Logan's Run: High Voltage
by J.M. Bowers
Summary: It's been three months since that fateful day. The Titans struggled to deal with the loss they were dealt. But Jump City is about to have another insane day - Garfield Logan is back, and he'll do anything to keep his heart on! Sequel to Logan's Run!
1. Prologue

Welcome back. Did you take your_ CRANK_ like I asked you to? If not...well then, here's another helping. Once again, any and all comments welcome!

* * *

"He's dead."

The words had cut like a knife through the hearts of the Teen Titans on that day. These were the very words they had been dreading to hear, yet almost seemed to know that they were coming either way.

Starfire had turned away, her eyes brimming with tears. Cyborg had looked down at the floor, shaking his head as the memories flooded his mind. Robin, however, had simply swallowed hard. He had to be the rock for the team – now more than ever. Raven was visibly shaken. The young man had reached out to comfort her – only to see the darkness in her eyes. She let out a scream, and the building shook with fury as the Girl from Azarath unleashed her anguish. Finally, when it seemed as if the walls would collapse upon them, the noise stopped, and the broken girl fell to her knees. Only then did she allow them to hold her, hold her like the boy she loved would have…

The Boy Wonder's eyes opened, his reminiscing complete. Time was supposed to heal all wounds. Some wounds, apparently, were too large to ever truly close regardless of time. That day of mayhem had become a footnote in Jump City, a funny story people told to tourists when they asked about the sights and sounds of the budding metropolis. For the Titans, however, it was the single event that nearly drove them apart – and nearly drove one of them insane.

Sitting on the edge of his bed, Robin wondered if he had made the right decision. The strain of that day had been hard on all of them. Nothing could ever compare to that fateful day, the day that the Titans suffered their greatest loss…

The day Garfield Logan died.

The hero closed his eyes, a faint smile on his face. Beast Boy had died fighting to save his friends from two madmen, men who were far more despicable than the hero ever thought. While his methods were brutal, it was the only way the violent tale could have ended. But then again, it never really ended.

Robin's eyes narrowed as he continued to brood. He was good at it, but he had gotten a little too attached to it recently. There was something that disturbed the young hero: after Blood's death, he assumed that the H.I.V.E., now leaderless, would slowly collapse inward on itself and be done with. For a few weeks, that seemed to be the case. However, it now seemed like the school was back on track. Try as he might, the Boy Wonder could not get any information on the new headmaster who apparently saved the H.I.V.E. from destruction. In fact, the only thing that seemed to have fallen apart after Beast Boy's final mission was the Titans themselves. The worst part about losing BB had been the lack of a body; despite a tireless search, he never appeared. Stories had been told of a mysterious truck that took off with the hero's corpse, but no evidence had ever surfaced and probably was drummed up solely for entertainment value. The additional strain of burying an empty coffin had driving Raven to the breaking point. She became inconsolable after the incident. One moment she was fine, the next she had hurled her bed across the room with a bat of an eyelash. She also began lashing out at her friends and became rather unstable and unreliable during emergencies. Finally, Robin had to let her go. True, he had suggested she get away from the city for a while to clear her head, but he now wondered if she ever planned on coming back. If she didn't, he couldn't blame her. He had appointed Ravager to the team in Beast Boy's place, so he only felt it right to give the open spot to her brother – the mute possessor Jericho. At least he had himself a full crew again…

The Titan sat up straight as her heard a knock at him door.

"Come," he said.

The door slid open, revealing Ravager. Of course, at this point the mask was off, so technically she was just Rose Wilson. It didn't matter: she had her skills either way.

"Well, you look cheerful," she said, leaning against the doorframe.

Robin sighed. "It's been a rough patch," he said, quietly.

"Indeed it has," Rose said, remembering the moment she watched Logan and Mento fall from the helicopter. She had whispered a silent prayer for him – that he would go on to a better place. Hopefully, she had been right. "I can't say when the pain will stop, but it will sooner or later."

Robin looked at the girl, a half-smile on his face. "I don't know whether to be thankful or frightened," he said jokingly.

"Be a bit of both," Rose said, returning the smile. "I'll be monitoring the streets if you need me."

With that, she was gone.

Robin leaned back onto his bed, and sighed. The pain would stop eventually. One day, the Titans would be whole again, ready to protect their fair city. Life would go on. At least, for the living…


	2. And The Beat Goes On

_THE END PLUS TEN SECONDS…_

The crowd had gathered in the streets of Jump City to see the little green man who had fallen from the sky. No one was quite sure what had occurred above their heads, but it had come to a rather messy conclusion. Luckily, the police would be able to sort the matter out with a minimum of fuss…

People let out cries of panic and fear as a black armored van whipped around the totaled car in the intersection. Its tires squealing, the vehicle stopped mere inches from Garfield Logan's head. The back doors of the van flew open, and a menagerie of uniformed guards came pouring out of the vehicle like clowns from a Volkswagen. One of the guards pulled a giant snow shovel from the back on the van, and quickly slid it under the Titan's prone form. With a flick of the wrist, he and his cohorts tossed the body into the back of the van. As the sirens approached, they were off like a rocket, absconding with their prize Their boss would be pleased. Very pleased indeed…

* * *

_No life. No response. Zero brain activity. Nostril flare – just a final breath. Blinking eye – electronic discharge from the brain. And the body settles into death. Do not pass go, do not collect $200. Cut, take, print, roll credits…_

_Thump-thump._

_Thump-Thump._

_THUMP-THUMP!_

* * *

_Gimme a sequel..._

* * *

_My eyes open. Fuck. My body feels like death warmed over. Too bad I wasn't dead…least, I didn't think I was. If I was dead, I'd probably feel a whole hell of a lot better._

_There's an oxygen mask over my face. My eyes are about as useful as busted toilet plungers. I can't see worth a damn as of the moment. I hear voices babbling around me. Can't make out the words. Man…why am I so lightheaded? It's like I'm floating in a sea of blackness, with only the moon to light my way. Trouble is the fucker keeps darting in and out from behind the clouds. I hear scraping sounds, like somebody sharpening a knife with a stone. Not a good feeling, if you catch my drift. Body's useless right now…can't even hold my head up. My eyes close. Death's coming to claim me…_

_That's when I feel their hands on me. No…__**IN **__me! I can feel their fingers rummaging around in my guts. Fuck are they looking for – a parking space? GET THE FUCK OUT OF ME! _

_I try to open my mouth, try to scream at them, but the shit they got me on is just too good. I can almost see sugarplum fairies dancing around my head…_

_The next sight I see sends those little bastards scurrying back to Neverland. The masks standing over me are pulling something out of my chest. No…can't be…it __**is…**_

_My heart._

_My MOTHERFUCKING heart! I can see it beating in their fucking hands! I look down. Chest's wide open. How the fuck am I still conscious? Is this real? Can't be. Couldn't be. Wouldn't be._

_Wait…is that…that is…the last of the Hive Five. They put my heart in a cooler and hand it to him. What's he gonna do – fuckin eat it?_

_What's this now? The masks are pulling out what honestly looks like a big bag of snot. Wonderful. Hold up...there's something in it. What is that? What the fuck is that?! Wait! Don't put that shit in me! DON'T PUT THAT SHIT IN ME!!!_

_Cue the darkness… _


	3. Wakey, Wakey, Eggs and Baccy

_Well, that was a pleasant image._

_My eyes ease open. I am alone. Can't tell whether what I saw was real or not. On the bright side, my body's finally stopped hurting. Maybe I am really dead this time…nope. I can see the vitals beeping away on the EKG machine. Well, so much for wishful thinking…_

_The room comes into focus. Kind of like what you'd expect a hospital room to look like…if it was ran by Norman Bates. This place is a shithole. I feel like I could catch Ebola just by breathing in the air. Not the most sanitary conditions in the world._

_My ears pick up the sound of footsteps coming down the hall. I close my eyes as tight as I can while still being able to see. I watch as two doctors enter the room. By my guess, they're roughly a thousand years old a piece. In one of the men's hands is a clipboard. As they discuss their next moves, I take an inconspicuous look at the board. On it is a diagram of the human body. Not too good with anatomy, but I can make out the main organs on the sheet like the stomach, the liver, and the heart – _

_THE HEART. Diagram's got a big circle with a check running through it right around that area. Then…that wasn't a nightmare. These motherfuckers really stole my heart! _

_As I lay in the bed, trying to figure out how the hell I could still be alive without that all-too-important part of me, my eyes catch something that bitch-slaps my brain with authority: The two quacks had now drawn a circle around the lower region of the diagram. Right around my…_

_Hell no. Fuck that! Ain't nobody taking my dong! The possum impression's gone on long enough. Time to get back in the game…_

The two doctors recoiled in shock as Logan sat up like Dracula on a slingshot. One solid elbow leveled one, and a brutal head butt sent the other on a trip to Sleepy Hollow. Maybe a bit too much for a couple of old wise guys, but they couldn't quite expect someone they cut open and fucked around with to be all too happy to see them.

_I throw the sheets off of my body. As I sit on the edge of the bed, I finally get a good look at what those fucks did to me: A giant scar runs down the front of my chest. It's definitely not pleasant-looking, and it certainly isn't stylish. Neither's the convoluted fanny pack strapped to my waist. Looks like a carrying case for one of those old-ass cell phones. Thing's got a wire running right to a receptor on my stomach. Not sure, but something tells me I shouldn't take this thing off. At least, not until I know exactly what the fuck it is._

_I blink my eyes, and I take a better look. It's got four little nodes on the top of it. One's dark, two are green, one closest to the wire is red. What that means, I haven't the foggiest damn idea. All I know is that it's time for me to blow this pop stand. Now._

_Lucky me. The clothes I had on me are tossed in a chair over in the corner. Good. Not planning on going out in my boxers. I look goofy enough already with the stupid belt. At least Robin's utility belt was sleek and refined. I look like a goddamn tourist._

_I step out into the hallway. Place's like a damn warehouse. Gonna get outside and see where I am. Keeping my head down, I walk past a couple open doorways. Nobody inside any of them. Not necessarily a good feeling. Wonder how many other people ended up here. Shit I can do about it now. Right now, the only guy I need to keep alive is me._

_If you can call whatever they did to me as being alive… _


	4. Keeping A Heart On

_I squint as I step out into the sunlight. Pausing for a moment, I take a deep breath and simply enjoy it. After I hung up that phone in mid-air, I didn't really expect there to be anything after that. Hell, looks like I had a continue after all…_

_Looking around, I realize that I'm at the wharf. Probably not too far from the warehouse where I sent Control Freak to meet his Dungeon Master. Giant cargo crates are scattered throughout the yard. Good cover for a quiet exit, but you never knew exactly what was coming up around the bend. Still, it's my only option as of the moment. I'm unarmed. Whoever was patrolling the yard probably wasn't. Handy piece of advice in case of shit._

_Personally, I hope I don't find myself in a 'in case of shit' scenario. Not sure what's happened to me, and maybe not quite ready to know. Better play this one close to the heart…Man, that pun was lame even for my standards …_

_Anyway, I play the cat-and mouse game like a pro. Pac-man ain't got shit on me. I'm near the gate. Just a few more steps to freedom…_

_What…no…I…shit!_

_I drop to my knees. My body feels like motor oil in a Montana winter. Everything's getting all fuzzy. What's happening to me? Systems…are shutting…down…_

_DING. It passes. Strange…I think I hear some kind of metallic sound around me. Something like the gears of a clock turning in an old tower. Quickly, I glance down at my pack. It's on red. Whatever had just happened was because of this thing. Seemed to keep a charge just as long as one of those old cell phones - about ten minutes. Still, I'm here, even without any assistance from this thing. I'm in the middle of contemplating what's going on when I hear the CLICK._

Logan looked up – and found himself at the opposite end of a .45. The young punk in front of him was tattooed across his arms with Tribal markings. His skinned head shined in the light of the overhead sun as he smiled at the little green man who just stepped on his turf.

"Lost, _puta_?" he asked the Titan.

"Nope."

_Poor guy didn't even see it coming. One arm goes out, knocking the gun from his hand. Other arm cracks him across the bridge of his nose. Good night, Gracie. I scoop up the gun. Based on my past experience, I'd probably need it in order to get the fucks who got my heart. Always did like to play the odds._

_I'm out the gate. Still confused about what happened to me, I hop into Tribal boy's car. Shit, no key. Double shit – his boys made me. Gotta hotwire this piece of junk and fast. Glass shatters behind me as I pull the wires loose from under the dash. Just need the right ones…_

_SNAP. SNAP. VROOM! And we're off! I burn rubber as the bangers take a few more potshots at the car. No holes in me. Best thing to happen all day. Looking around, I see a cell phone lying on the seat next to me. Aw, how did they know? Anyway, I pick it up. Dialing out, I was about to surprise the hell out of somebody but good…_

* * *

Bumblebee grimaced as she observed the state of the tower.

"You know, just because we're teens doesn't mean we have to live like this," she said angrily as she mentally counted the candy bar wrappers and fast-food bags that littered the furniture and floor of the living room. "You guys are utterly disgusting!"

As the Titans East leader went on another tirade, Aqualad simply shut the door to his room. Bee usually had this talk with the team – well, mainly Speedy and Menos – about once a month. This chat usually coincided with her 'special time'. Lad had taken to calling it "Bee's week of massive bitchitude". Not like he would say it to her face. He likes his reproductive organs exactly where they were, and had no plans for them to be forcibly removed.

The hero let out a sigh as he flipped through the pages of a Hustler magazine. Even tits weren't breaking him out of his depression. This was serious. Then again, all the shit that went down in Jump City had been the biggest buzz kill he'd ever been dealt…

Lad flinched as his cell phone rang. He had made it a habit of keeping the phone in his room. The calls were untraceable, unlike the communicator. While that was all well and good for privacy, he had grown mighty tired of outrageous phone bills to a bunch of 1-900 numbers that he was pretty certain _he_ hadn't called and no one else was 'fessing up to on account of Bumblebee's presence in the tower. Reaching for it, he expected little more that telemarketers trying to sell him a timeshare somewhere in South Africa. What he got was a little bit better.

"Hello?" Aqualad said into the phone as he grabbed his glass.

"Lad? It's me, Garfield."

The remark gave the Titan just enough time to spit the soda he had just sipped all over the floor of his room.

"Jesus fuckin' H. Logan!" he shouted, happy that the steel walls would contain the conversation. "Man, what the hell? I thought you were dead!"

"So did I," the Titan's voice came in over the phone. "Might still get there. Look, I got a problem."

The aquatic hero shook his head. "When don't you have a problem?" he asked.

"Good question," Logan said, curtly. "Look, I know this is gonna be some wacky shit to swallow, but…Dude, they got my heart."

Aqualad sat in his chair, his jaw dropped in amazement. Then, he started laughing.

"Dude," he said, giggling like a hyena, "You have the worst possible luck! God, this shit is morbidly funny!"

"Sorry to ruin your moment, Lad, but you might have noticed I'm not FUCKING LAUGHING!" the Titan said, angrily.

Lad's smile disappeared. "Oh shit, you're serious," he muttered. "Wait, wait, wait – how are you still alive?"

"I don't know," Logan said, looking down at his waist. "I got some kind of pack attached to my body. I think it's powering something."

At this, Lad couldn't help but burst into another round of laughter. "Dude, I don't believe it!" he said. "They gave you an artificial heart!"

Logan's eyes went wide. "WHAT?!" he screamed into the phone.

_Thinking back on the nightmare, I can see it better – a giant blob of clear goo and wires. The image makes me wanna fuckin' puke. That giant blob of snot was apparently the only reason I was still alive. Just goddamn peachy… _

"Look man, whoever those guys were, they were probably harvesting you for organs," Lad said, regaining his composure. "They take anything else?"

"No, just the pumper," Logan said, angrily. "I just can't believe they did this shit so quickly!"

Lad cocked his head to the side. "What do you mean?" he asked.

Logan growled. "I just took a fucking nosedive out of a helicopter! These fucks work fast!"

The hero swallowed hard. This was not going to be pleasant.

"BB, I hate to tell you this," he said, slowly, "but that shit went down almost three months ago."

_My mind goes numb. Did I hear Aqualad right? THREE months? How long did those bastards have me? How long ago did they take my heart from me? I had a head full of questions, and no answers to placate them._

"BB, you still there?" Lad's voice snapped the Titan back to reality.

"Yeah, I'm here," he said, dejectedly. "Whenever here is."

"Look, I'd be willing to guess that if they dropped an artificial heart in you to keep you alive for harvesting, they probably used an AviCor heart," Lad said. "It's the most technologically advanced mechanical heart they got on the market. It's designed to mimic regular human tissue so the body won't reject it. Downside is they need power – and a lot of it. That belt is the external power source. Tell me: how many bars you got on it?"

Logan looked down at the belt. "It's red," he said.

"Shit!" Lad said.

"What?" the Titan asked. "What do you mean by 'shit!'?"

"The belt's dead," the hero said. "Once the external battery's done, the internal one kicks in. Once that happens, you got one fuckin' hour. If I were you, I'd charge that mother quick. Also – and I'm sure this is a fruitless endeavor but I'll say it anyway - try not to do anything strenuous. The more you work your body, the more juice the heart uses and the quicker you motivate yourself into your grave… got me? "

"Gotcha," Logan said. "I'm gonna see if I can find the Titans. Lad, I hate to do this to you…but I need you to locate my heart."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Lad asked.

…_Last of the Hive Five…_

"Find that pint-sized little fuck Gizmo," Logan said. "I saw them hand the cooler with my heart off to him. He's got it right now."

Aqualad paused for a moment. "Alright, but I gotta warn you – nobody's seen that snotball since your last joyful run through the city, so it's gonna take some time," he said. "As for now, this is all on the down low. Until you say otherwise, I won't inform Bee or the rest of the team of anything."

"Thanks, Lad," Logan said, a small smile coming to his face. "I owe you big time."

"Yeah," Lad said, quietly. "Hey, BB?"

"Yeah?"

"It's nice to have you back among the living," he said. "Try to stick around this time, would ya?"

"Planning on it," Logan said. "Late."

* * *

_Hanging up the phone, I feel the car start to swerve. I'm powering down like Johnny 5. In my stupor, I grab the two wires I spliced together. My fingers burn as I touch the exposed metal. The engine backfires from the strain. I, however, shoot up in my seat. Shit's like a high I haven't felt in quite some time, not since I ran the streets of this city looking for the Titans. Understandable, since I apparently spent the last three months in a goddamn coma. _

_My eyes focus sharply as I recharge…literally. Then, my mind asks a funny little question: Hey…is that a concrete divider in the road ahead of me? _

_Oh shit…_


	5. The Juice Is Loose

SMASH!

_Hmm, knew I forgot something when I got in this thing. In my big hurry to hotwire a vehicle and duck flying lead I never managed to put my seatbelt on. My head and shoulders hit the windshield like a cannonball. I hear something shatter. Hope it's not me, but given the day I've been having I wouldn't be surprised._

_My body hits the pavement hard. I slide down the street about six or eight feet like a penguin on a glacier. Fuck, this hurts! How the hell do they do it? Probably use a fin to keep their balls from dragging on the ground. I don't have that luxury. As I come to a stop, my pants are so hot I swear they're moments from catching on fire._

_Rolling over on my back, I assess the situation. Good news: I'm still in one piece. Bad news: The battery pack's not so lucky. Thing's trashed now. I unfasten the belt and pop the wire off the receptor. No use carrying dead weight. Getting back to my feet, I take a look back at the car. It looks just like I feel – like shit. Car's coming up the road. Hmm, looks like we got a Good Samaritan on our hands. Let's find out how good…_

Logan watched closely as the car rolled up. A young man stuck his head out the passenger window. His eyes widened as he took in the sight of the busted-up Titan.

"Hey man, you aright?" he asked.

"Peyton fuckin' Manning," the hero growled. "Never been better. Best day of my fucking life."

"You need some help?" the guy asked.

Looking back at the car, Logan glanced at the two men in the car.

"Yeah," he said. "You guys mind giving me a jump?"

The trunk of the car closed as the young man returned with the pair of jumper cables. As he walked past the wrecked car, he realized very quickly that it wasn't going to be going anywhere. Water and oil were leaking out onto the ground. This car was done for. So why did that little green dude ask him for a jump? Looking back, his eyes already had the question posted in them. Logan just shook his head.

"Just juice me," he said.

_Positive to positive. Negative to Negative. Good. Guy knows how to use those things. Without warning, I lift up the bottom of my shirt, revealing the scar. Jesus, Gar – what the fuck are you doing? _

_I clamp the positive end onto my chest. Dumbest idea I've ever had in my life. If the Titans were here, they'd be going fucking apeshit. I shake my head. Gotta build the nerve. My mouth opens, and my tongue protrudes from the recesses. This is gonna be an experience…_

_I clamp down. _

_WHOA! Oh…baby…that shit is good…_

Logan's body shot up like a rocket. The two Samaritans exchanged nervous glances. This was not the kind of jump they were expecting to give on that day. Still, to each their own. There was only one thing left to do now.

Hit the gas, and fire it up.

* * *

_My legs pump pavement like a man possessed. Everything's on overdrive. Never felt so alive before. Mind's racing as fast as the mechanical beast in my chest. For a second, I almost forgot why the hell I'm charging through towards downtown Jump City. Then I remember: the Titans. Gotta get to the tower. Based on my location, I'm nearly two miles away. Shit, I could cover than distance in twenty minutes at this rate. Still, I'm aware that this heart's only gonna power down again. However, I'm now also aware that, for all intensive purposes, I had just been transformed into a living lightning rod. I need it to stay alive. Becoming a goddamn junkie. First, it was adrenaline. Now, it was HIGH VOLTAGE. Any shock, zap, or spark'll do. Goddamn, who ever knew my life was going to be this 'shocking'?_

_As I continue the mad rush, I chuckle to myself. Now that…that had been a good pun._

* * *

The room was dark. That was to be expected. No one had been in this place for quite some time. Not since…

The door to the building slid open. A little man stepped inside. With a flick of the switch, the headquarters of the Hive Five sprung back to life, bathing the lone occupant in a sea of light.

Things had been fine for the five H.I.V.E students that had banded together in an effort to exterminate the Titans once and for all. Sure, things had gotten rocky when Jinx decided to depart the team, but it was all good. There were four, and the future was bright…

Then came that day. The day the H.I.V.E. Four faced their greatest challenge: the chance to wipe out the least capable of the Teen Titans. Poisoned, left for dead, incapable of transforming at all – it was supposed to be an easy task. What they got was dead. In one fell swoop, the H.I.V.E. lost a handful of its' greatest students as well as its' leader. The H.I.V.E. Five were no more. Now, there was just him.

Gizmo sat at the empty table, clutching the red cooler to his body. He had found himself alone after that fateful day. He had been all but banished from the school for not helping in the pursuit and capture of Garfield Logan, the idiot Titan-turned-unstoppable juggernaut. It had almost been too much for him to bear…

That's when he got the call. _SHE_ needed him, needed him for something important. Something important enough to get him back into the H.I.V.E.'s good graces. He had taken it without hesitation. He had stood in that makeshift OR when they handed him his prize. He took pleasure in watching as they cut open the body of the son of a bitch that took his friends and his life away from him. He deserved to die like that, watching his life walk out the door.

Smiling, the villain clutched the cooler even tighter. Things were finally starting to look up…

* * *

_Gonna find Gizmo and choke him to death with his own cock. He'd learn what all the others had learned at the very end: You don't fuck with Garfield Logan. _

_I turn the next corner – and stop as I take in a beautiful sight. Titan Tower. It's still off in the distance, but just seeing it is the best feeling in the world. Don't know how much juice I got left in me. Think it might be time for a recharge…_


	6. Roses Are Red And So Is Blood

Rose monitored the air traffic on the radio. Day had been going pretty slow. At least, up until about fifty minutes ago. First came the report of gunfire over by the wharf on the east end of town. Then came one about a one-car accident with an individual fleeing the scene. Next came more reports of possible said individual running in the streets, causing traffic jams and accidents and supposedly moving so fast he had to be on something. Crazy things happening in a short period of time, she mused. Just like that day she found herself on the opposite end of a fist sent by him…

Shaking her head, she cleared her mind. No use bringing up the past now. Suddenly, the box squealed again: the fugitive, as he was now called, was spotted in the downtown Jump City area. Eyewitness reports said that the fugitive looked like…

Her eyes widened. Had she heard that correctly? It couldn't be. No one could have lived through that…

Pushing the chair back as she got to her feet, Rose grabbed her mask and slid it over her face. Whatever the deal was, there was a ruckus going on in Jump City – and she was about to take a piece of it.

* * *

_I'm about two blocks away from the old pizza place when it hits me. Running on empty. I stumble and nearly face plant on the sidewalk. Need a boost. I look around. Gotta be something nearby that can sustain me…_

_I see it hanging over on the pole. A power box for the traffic lights. That'll do. I hobble my gimpy ass over to it. Damn this Mickey Mouse piece of shit! I thought the poison was bad. At least I didn't have to stick my dick in a light socket to keep going. Thoughts like these just keep me focused on what I have to do: Find Gizmo, kill him painfully, and get my heart back. H.I.V.E. Five's down to one. Might as well wipe out the whole bunch once and for all. Never liked to do a job half-assed, anyway. I'm at the box. Time to go to work…_

Logan gripped the sides of the metal panel with his fingers and pulled as hard as he could. No dice. It wouldn't budge. Padlock's holding it in place.

In a rage, the Titan brought his fist down on the lock. Then he did it again. And again…

His face contorted in pain, Logan held his bloodied hand. "FUCK!" he shouted. Not the brightest idea he'd ever had. The next one would be a bit brighter…

BLAM! People screamed as Logan shot off the lock with the .45. Quickly, he ripped the panel open. Wires and electrodes galore filled the box as the Titan flexed his fingers.

_Here goes…_

Ravager could hear the screams as she hastened her arrival on the scene. She knew how to move quickly through this city after studying its' layout from satellite photos, and she used it to her advantage. Looking up at the intersection, she saw the traffic lights on all four poles flashing wildly.

"Great," she muttered to herself. "It's probably Killowatt. When did they let him out of his cage?"

Pulling her gun from her holster, the Titan knew it was time to end this. She wouldn't shoot to kill…just shoot enough. Taking a deep breath, she rounded the corner.

_The force of the power surging through my body knocks me back against the wall. Every muscle had tightened up, but it was worth it. I took a moment to catch my breath, my head sunk down into my chest I could feel the presence of someone standing over me. I hear the tendons of fingers tightening around a trigger. A hand comes down, heading for my neck. Uh-uh-uh. That action's not available right now…_

Rose let out a shriek as the body grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the ground. With his other hand, he grabbed the gun and leveled it at her face. She had come around the corner just in time to see someone fly back. She figured it was due to Killowatt's power. She had just reached down to check for a pulse when she found herself on the end of her own gun. Looking up, her eyes widened. Here, on this street corner among the eyes of stunned citizens, it seemed that the dead had risen.

"G…Garfield?" she stammered.

The name snapped the Titan out of his trance. His face softened as recognition took place.

"Rose?" he asked, confused.

Quickly, the two Titans scrambled back to their feet. The girl's heart fluttered for a moment. Not everyday the unsung hero of Jump City returns from the dead.

"Logan, where have you been?" she asked, a hint of anger in her eyes. "It's been three months! Not even a phone call?!"

"Sorry, but I was kinda in a coma," the green man said, harshly.

"Well, then I guess that should explain everything," the girl said, putting her hands on her hips. "All except how you managed to survive a 5000-foot fall!"

"Do I look like an encyclopedia?!" Logan said as he stormed back off in the direction of the pizza place. "I don't fucking know how I survived! All I know is that I'm here now – and if I wanna stay here, I gotta get to the tower. Then I 'm gonna get my hands on a pint-sized sack of shit!"

"Hey, hey, hey, HEY!" Rose screamed, cutting off the Titan at the pass. "You're not going anywhere until I get some fuckin' answers!"

The two stood on the sidewalk, glaring at one another. That's when the girl heard the sound. The metallic sound emanating from the hero's chest:

_CLICK-CLICK…_

_CLICK-CLICK…_

"What the hell is that?" she asked, her face slowly becoming a mask of confusion and fear.

Logan sighed. Without a word, he lifted up his shirt and exposed the scar. A hand went to Rose's mouth as she took in the sight.

"Jesus, Gar," she choked out. "What the fuck did they do to you?"

"They took out my heart and replaced it with a Rolex," the man said sarcastically as he dropped his shirt and continued onward. "Now I keep time perfectly."

"Goddamn it, Garfield!" Rose said, jumping back in front of him again. "Tell me the truth!"

"THAT IS THE TRUTH!" Logan shot back, furiously. "Well, all except for the Rolex part. Now, get out of my way! I gotta get back to the tower!"

"You 'gotta' slow the fuck down!" Rose shouted. "You're not in good shape, BB! Shit, I just found you alive after three months of mourning you, and you wanna make sure you actually get in your grave this time?"

Logan stopped in his tracks. Slowly, he turned back to look at the young heroine.

"You…mourned me?" he asked, a look of surprise on his face.

Rose sighed, looking down at the ground. "We all did," she said, quietly. "I mean, you went on a rampage to save your friends regardless of the cost to your own life. That's something that sticks with people forever…even if the rest of the city doesn't even know what happened."

_I open my mouth to ask her what she meant by that, but I already knew the answer: my run, regardless of what good had come from it, would have caused too much damage to the Titans' reputation. Robin couldn't admit to the people of this city that the happy-go-lucky Beast Boy went on an adrenaline-induced destruction derby that had cost them millions in damages. They'd have been run right out of town for that shit. Still, I don't know how he managed to finagle that entire BS story and do it without consequence…_

Rose walked up to the young hero, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Look, I'm sure we all have been on a roller coaster shitstorm for the past couple months, but if we're gonna keep you alive this time, we need to know everything. At the very least _I _need to know everything," she said with a faint smile. "Come on – let's go get a pizza. My treat."

_I'm standing in Jump City with a girl's hand on my shoulder and a ticking time bomb in my chest. I don't know if I'll live to see two hours from now let alone the next sunrise. I should be moving, doing what I need to find the one thing that can keep me alive. Then again, if I'm gonna die, I might as well indulge one last time._

_I weight the options for the moment. Ahhh…fuck it. Of all the shit that could kill me right now, pizza is the least of my worries._


	7. All Out In The Open

Rose leaned back in her chair, her mind trying to comprehend all that she had just heard.  
"Are you fucking kidding me?" she said, fighting back a giggle. "Who in the world would want your heart – especially after all that it went through?"

"Well, that's the thing, Rose," Logan said as he scarfed down another slice. "It wasn't my heart the poison was designed to attack – just the adrenal gland. All things considered, my heart would be in perfect condition if it was placed in someone else. Whether or not the poison had killed me would have been irrelevant."

"Luckily it didn't," the girl said, nodding. "Then again, neither did that drop from the helicopter."

"Yeah, I'm the fuckin' Terminator," the man said, shaking his head. "Gonna be termi_nated_ if I don't get my heart back."

Looking back at Rose, a troubled look came over his face. "How'd the others take it?" he asked. "You know, when I, uh…died."

The Titan let out a sigh. "Better than I thought they would," she said. "Then again, it might just have seemed that way due to the way Raven was acting."

At the mentioning of Raven's name, Logan's eyes widened.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Jeez," Rose muttered as she shifted in her chair. "You really wanna know?"

The green man nodded.

"Well, she flipped when she got your message," the girl began. "Started playing it day and night. It was all she could think about. Then, when we couldn't find your body, she started losing it. She'd snap at the slightest comment for no apparent reason. She started destroying her things – usually by accident. Just one massive wave of energy and half the shit in her room would be headed for the dumpster. We put up with it for a while – even though we knew Robin's patience was being strained something fierce. It finally broke that day we apprehended some bank robber. Guy had a mask on his face that kinda made him look like Mento. Raven took one good look at him and tried to rip him in half with her powers. Took every single one of us to snap her back to reality. By that time the guy was a fuckin' mess. Still in the hospital in a medically-induced coma last time I checked. Needless to say, that was the final straw."

Logan's head dropped into his hands. "Shit," he muttered. "What happened then?"

"Raven left," Rose said, matter-of-factly. "Said she needed to get the flare-ups under control. Robin didn't persuade her to stay. That was about two months ago, and we haven't heard a thing from her since."

The two Titans sat in silence for a moment.

"You know, maybe it's a good thing she's not here right now," Logan said, quietly. "Me coming back out of the blue like this…I don't think she could've handled the strain. Woulda fucked her mind up something bad."

"Well, let's give her a little more credit than that," Rose said with a smirk. "I mean, she really does love you – it just all deep down inside."

"You think so?" the hero asked.

The girl laughed. "I was there when you planted that little goodbye tonsillectomy on her, remember?" she said.

Logan sighed as he rolled his eyes. "Shit…" he said.

This was then that his face became serious.

"Rose, how long have we been here?" he asked.

The girl glanced down at her watch. "About thirty minutes. Why?"

Logan stood up in a huff. "Don't mean to be rude," he said, "but I think we better make tracks back to the tower. This pumper's only got an hour long charge."

"So?" Rose said, smiling as he leaned back again in her chair. "We'll just juice you up if you need it."

The Titan shook his head. "You don't get it, Rose," he said, sternly as he pointed at his chest. "This thing's only supposed to last a couple of weeks. I got no fuckin' clue when they dropped this ball of snot in me, so I'm working on borrowed time. Plus, the 'methods' I've been using today to charge this piece of shit have been putting a lot of strain on it. If I pop this thing, you guys'll have a body to put in that casket out in Jump City Cemetery."

That response got the Titan back on her feet. "Check, please," she said.

Logan simply smiled.

* * *

The hallowed halls of the H.I.V.E. Academy for Budding Supervillains sat in a hushed silence. Many of the Students were in class, learning the techniques they would be using in order to achieve a successful career in villainy. One room, however, had a deathly strange silence hanging in the air: the one with the words _HEADMASTER _on the door.

Miguel Rodolfo stood in silence at the center of the room, a handful of his boys surrounding him. His white wifebeater bore traces of blood – mainly his own courtesy of the little fuck who put out his lights earlier in the day. Normally, he would be cursing up a storm and promising vengeance against those who even breathed in his direction. But this wasn't normal, and his fate was no longer in his hands. It lay in the hands of the figure who stood near the window, contemplating his major fuck-up. His arms, heavily tattooed with Tribal markings, lay down at his side. He dare not make a move, less he wanted to end up in a body bag. After what seemed like an eternity, the figure spoke.

"Rodolfo, do you know why I hired you and _Los Muertos _to be my personal guard?" it asked with a voice like velvet. An answer was not to be expected, less the boy wanted to lose his tongue as well as his dignity. "I'll tell you why: You were hired because you and your gang have the best track record of any organized team in the city that doesn't have the word 'Titans' anywhere in it. You are the best at what you do – and what you do isn't very nice."

The banger let out a sigh as the figure strolled down, still looking out the windows of the building the voice continued: "Because of the aforementioned track record, I personally chose you to do a simple task. I chose you to bring me what I asked for. I chose you…to bring me…Garfield Logan."

Rodolfo grimaced. He had been the one to hold Logan at gunpoint back at the wharf. He had also been the one to blow the opportunity. The headmaster had made sure he was aware of this little fact.

"Now, Rodolfo, where I come from we do not tolerate anything less that complete success," the voice rambled on. "You, on the other hand, seem quite capable of fucking up a wet dream. This I cannot overlook. I still need you…but I cannot let this little transgression slide."

The voice stopped as the pacing did. The moment had come.

"Make your penance," the voice commanded.

"_Mierda_," Miguel muttered under his breath. Slowly, he pulled off the wifebeater to reveal his equally-tattooed chest. Gritting his teeth as one of his boys handed him a blade, he proceeded to carve an X deep into the flesh around his left breast. It was a small one, just across the nipple itself, bit the deep cut bled him like a stuck pig. As the last stroke was made, he lowered his hands, allowing the incision to be inspected.

"Good boy," the headmaster said. "Now…the other one."

Grimacing even more so, the banger cut deep into the flesh over his heart.

"Not too deep," the voice warned him. "I still need you alive."

Within moments, the grotesque deed was done. Rodolfo stood before the headmaster with his own blood trickling down his chest.

"I forgive you," the voice said. "Now, go get some Band-Aids and get me Garfield Logan. You fuck this one up, and you'll be carving those X's on the head of your cock."

Rodolfo and his men beat a hasty retreat from the headmaster's room. He would not fail again – not because he had respect for the headmaster, but because he had respect for his cock. Next time it would be Logan laid out on the ground. He'd make sure of it.


	8. Homecoming

_I see the elevator doors close in front of me. Strange. I was a Titan for years. Getting in the elevator and heading back up to the nerve center was an everyday thing. Nothing to write home about. But now…it's been three months, and I've been considered dead. I'm a Pilgrim in a foreign land. Let's hope the natives don't freak…_

_DING._ The elevator doors opened, and the two Titans emerged from the confines. The first thing that struck Logan was the fact that it was so calm and quiet.

"Dude, what gives?" he asked. "This place is dead."

Rose sighed as he removed her mask. "Been that way ever since I got here," she said. "Cyborg spends all day in the garage tinkering with the Cy-Car, Starfire's usually out at the mall when she's not in her room, Robin's always in his room unless there's a call, and Jericho rather keeps to himself."

Logan glanced around the room. The lights were on, but it was like no one was home.

"They took that shit hard," he muttered. "Looks like the fun and games died with the life of the party."

"I'd say that's about right," the girl said. Then, she smiled. "Then again, look who's back."

The hero nodded. "Yeah, everybody's favorite piñata," he joked.

Rose smirked. "Look, just stay here for a moment, okay?" she asked. "I gotta round up some people for the biggest shock of their lives."

"Hey, if there's going to be any shocks, _I _need 'em," Logan said, returning the smile.

As the girl continued down the hall, the hero shook his head.

_Nice job, Gar. Flirting with the trained killer. You've got some real fucked-up issues, boy._

* * *

Starfire looked up from her toenails as her door opened. Her eyes narrowed a little as Rose entered the room. Despite the skill and power the young woman possessed, the Tamaranean was still wary of her. Robin may have had enough faith in her to give her Beast Boy's spot on the team, but she was still the daughter of Slade, and that made her a loose cannon to say the least.

"Hey, Star," the girl said. "Didn't mean to bother you."

"If that were the case, you would not have entered," the alien said, emotionlessly. She would not be rude, but she would make sure the heroine knew what she felt about her appointment to the team.

Rose fidgeted slightly. While Robin had welcomed her to the team with open arms, the reactions of the others had not been as favorable. Still, this wasn't the time for petty shit.

"Look, uh, we've got a bit of a situation," she said. "I'd handle it, but I think you guys need to be part of it."

"And why do you believe that?" Star asked as she put the nailbrush back into the bottle of polish.

"Because…" Rose tried to find the right words. "Because it has to deal with what went on that day."

The Tamaranean's bare feet hit the floor as she got up from her bed. "In what way does it have to do with the loss of our friend?"

"You're better off seeing it for yourself," the girl said. "I paged Cyborg and Robin. They're coming up from the garage now. Come on."

As Rose exited the room, Starfire hesitated for a moment. Perhaps this was a trick. Maybe there was nothing to get worked up over. Still, the other Titans would be in the room in case something funny happened. Sighing, she pulled her boots back on and headed out the door.

_DING._ The elevator doors open again as Robin and Cyborg came up from the garage.

* * *

"Man, when did Ravager decide she was the leader of the Teen Titans?" the mechanical man said, shaking his head. "Paging us for something important…"

"Yeah, that's a twist, isn't it?" the Boy Wonder said, smirking.

The three Titans had assembled in the living room of the tower. Before them stood Rose, her arms over her chest. Next to her was Jericho. This was it…the time had come.

"So, what's the big deal?" Robin asked, eying the girl suspiciously. "You said you have something to show us?"

"I do," the girl said, quietly.

"Then where is it?" Cyborg asked.

Rose couldn't help it. She smiled.

"Turn around…"

* * *

_The action is slow, deliberate. The three turn as one. No surprise there. They've been a team for so long it's become second nature. Hmm, just caught that. Should have been 'we'. I'm still here. Then again, maybe I really ain't. Not anymore…_

_Their eyes gaze upon me. I feel like laughing. Ever seen deer caught in the headlights? Same thing. The mind is running, not sure whether or not the eyes are playing tricks on them. Star is the first. Always was the one to trust…at least, trust in me…_

"BEAST BOY!" The Tamaranean cried as she wrapped her arms around the Titan. Tears fell from her eyes as she hoisted him into the air with ease. "The stars have shined upon us more gloriously than ever before!"

"I'll take it you're happy to see me," Logan said, grunting under the strain.

As the alien placed the Titan back down on his feet, Robins shook his head. He had seen many a strange thing in his time with the Titans, but this one had to take the cake. With his hands on his hips, a broad grin broke out on his face.

"Well, looks like they just can't keep a good Titan down," he said with a laugh.

Logan frowned slightly. "Believe me," he said, "it wasn't from lack of trying."

"BB, how in the world did you survive a fall like that?" Cyborg asked. "Ravager told us what she saw that day. Hell, I probably couldn't have survived that! Gimme some answers!"

The Titan shrugged his shoulders. "Blind luck? Divine intervention? The twisted inner machinations of a deranged fanfic writer? Take your pick."  
"I for one am not concerned about the how or the why or any of the other questions one is supposed to ask in this situation,' Starfire said, brightly. "I am just happy you have returned!"

"Yeah, well don't get all gushy-gushy," Logan said, firmly. "I still got me some scores to settle, and now I need to –!"

_I double over as my words hit the bricks. Time's up. Need a juice, and I need it now…_

"Beast Boy!" the Tamaranean cried as she caught the green man in her arms, supporting his weight. The other Titans were upon him quickly.

"BB, what is it?" Cyborg asked.

"I'm…running on empty…" Logan stammered.

"Oh shit…" Robin muttered. "Your heart! Star, come on! We gotta get him moving again!"

"Wait…not gonna help…" the Titan choked out.

"What? But the poison…" the Boy Wonder began.

"Fuck the poison!" Logan growled.

_I glance around. Damn building's designed to survive an EMP blast, so electrical circuits are sealed off real well. Fuck, don't have time for this…_

_My eyes land on Cy. Best chance. Not gonna be pretty, but it'll do…_

"Yo, Cyborg," the hero said, grimacing. "You still got that Taser attachment?"

Quickly, the mechanical man's right hand morphed out to reveal a two-pronged fork, snapping with power. "Yeah, I do," he said as he looked at the device. "But the thing's got 300,000 volts. I don't see why…!"

Cyborg was cut off as Logan reached up and grasped his hand. Pulling himself from the grip of the other Titans, they watched in horror as the Titan planted the prongs on his chest!

"BEAST BOY!" Robin yelled. But it was too late…

* * *

_Damn, Cy knows how to make 'em. I light up like a Christmas tree. The juice is flowing again. Another close call, but I gotta admit: I'm starting to like this._

The Titans recoiled in fear as Logan stumbled back from the electrodes. Shaking his head, he looked at them with a sense of appreciation in his eyes.

"Okay, that was fun," he said as he ran a hand through his hair. "Now, what was I talking about again?"

"I…I think you were about to tell us what the hell just happened," Robin said, his eyes as wide as saucers behind the mask.

Looking at their expressions, Logan sighed. Might as well get it over with.

* * *

The cool air swirled around the trees and through the valley as she stood on the ledge. She had been here before, under much more taxing circumstances. That time, it had taken all of her will not to hurl herself off into the Great Beyond and leave this world behind. She hadn't been ready.

Her toes curled involuntarily in her boots as she gazed out over the horizon. She had spent many days wandering the wilderness of Siberia, basking in the bracing cold and the haunting silence. 'To get away from it all'…that is what she had wanted. Closing her eyes, she felt the cold wind cut straight through her being. She shivered, feeling it run deep to her core. This feeling…it was one of many. Feelings seek to remind one that they are still alive. She was still alive. All she had to do now was live.

The ledge was the ultimate test. She had returned to it many times over the months. Looking over the edge, if she felt even the slightest twinge of pain, she knew it was not time. But now, as she gave herself to the peace and tranquility of the wild, the pain was gone. She was whole again. Not perfectly, but enough to be herself. Enough to live.

Her eyes shot open. A small smile came to her face. She was ready. It was time to go home.


	9. Shop 'Till You Drop Dead

Robin sat on the couch, his head buried in his hands.

"This…this is a joke, right?" he said, looking back up at Logan. "I mean…I can't fathom how you survived the helicopter fall and you drop this in our lap? It's…it's just impossible."

"Yeah, heard that already," the Titan said, frowning. "From two other people. Guess the quiz show's just gonna keep going at this rate."

Cyborg shook his head, flabbergasted. "Okay, all crazy shit aside, what is it you need?" he asked.

"My heart, for one," Logan said, smirking. "Outside of that, someone who can put it back in."

"Then I'm your man," the mechanical man said with a smile. "I built the medical center we got here in the tower. Downside is the only person who had the knowledge to run the equipment outside myself disappeared into thin air two months back."

"Yeah," the hero said, images of the kiss he had shared with Raven burning in his mind. "Well, no need to worry about that until I have the heart. I sure Robin or Jericho could brush up on some tech skills."

"What about me?" Rose asked, quizzically. "You don't trust me or something?"

Logan smirked at her. "I have trouble picturing you in a nurse's uniform, to be honest," he said.

Rose smirked back. "I bet you could picture me in even less without a problem," she teased.

The remark turned all eyes towards the young hero.

"BB, what is she getting at?" Robin asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Uh…well…" Logan's hand went to his side as he heard the cell phone go off.

_Saved by the bell…_

"I…uh, gotta take this," he said, quickly before picking up.

"Yo?" he said.

"BB, it's Aqualad," the voice said. "Hate to be a buzz kill, but have you seen the news? City's going fuckin' apeshit over the crazy things that have been happening today."

"Yeah, well things are only gonna get worse until I get my pumper back," Logan said.

"Speaking of pumper, how are you doing?" Lad asked.

"Well, I lost the battery belt for starters," the hero said.

"Shit!" Lad cursed. "How long ago?"

"Probably an hour and a half," Logan mused.

"AN HOUR AND A HALF!" Lad's voice was so loud the other Titans could hear him. "Jesus, you should be dead…No, fuck it. Whatever. Should've known by now your ass would still be alive. Probably survive a goddamn nuke attack!"

"Well, let's not hope for that shit," the Titan said. "You got a tail on Gizmo yet?"

"Well, the H.I.V.E.'s back in full time, so I wouldn't have expected him to be out," Lad said, quickly.

"So you got him or what?" Logan asked, irritated.

"Yeah, Tremm tracked him to the Mall of America downtown," Aqualad said, sighing. "But listen – cops are covering the streets now. They've put an APB out on you, man, and it ain't pretty. I'd suggest you lay low and wait for all this to blow over, but since I know you're not going to listen to me, just keep a low profile, okay?"

"Gotcha," Logan said. "You find out anything else about this timepiece they stuck in me?"

"Yeah, but you ain't gonna like it," Lad said.

"Never stopped you before," the hero said. "Enlighten me."

"Well, the longest anyone's ever gone with an AviCor heart was just over three months," the aquatic hero said. "Even with the benefit of the doubt in saying they dropped that puppy in you at that time, you're running out the life expectancy real quick. Then again, the other patients weren't exactly on a collision course with a bunch of crazy freaks, so that thing in your chest is an enigma. It could go a week from now or in six minutes. There's no telling how long you got left."

"Well, that's fuckin' wonderful," Logan said, shaking his head. "Lad, see if you guys can hack the H.I.V.E. mainframe. Any information on why the fuck they did this shit to me would be helpful."

"What makes you think that the H.I.V.E.'s involved?" the Titan asked.

"Because Robin's informed me that it's still up and running despite the fact that Blood's worm food," the green man said. "Like to know why that is and if it's got anything to do with me."

"Alright, we'll get on it," Lad said.

"On last thing, man," Logan added.

"What's that?"

"The Titans know, so feel free to drop the bomb on Bee and the rest of the squad when you got some free time…'less of course they've already seen the news."

'No, Bee's still being a bitch," Lad said with a smile. "Though I gotta say this might actually cheer her up."

"Thanks, Lad," Logan said. "I'll give you a call once I find Gizmo."

"Stay alive, dude."

"Late."

"So, I assume that Aqualad was your saving grace last time?" Robin asked as Logan hung up the phone.

"One of them," he said, glancing over at Rose. "Listen, I got a trace on Gizmo. He's at the mall. I'ma head after him. I should be fine right now, but I need a favor from Cyborg…well, two favors."

The Titan smiled as Logan looked over at him. "Man, if you hadn't just risen from the grave, I might have told you to stuff it," he said. "What'cha need?"

"First, I need you to build me another battery pack," the hero said. "Something that lasts longer than ten frigging' minutes."

"Shoot, and here I thought you'd ask me to do something hard," Cyborg laughed. "What else?"

Logan grimaced. This was not the time to bring up the past, but he had to ask…

"I, uh, need to borrow the Cy-Car," he said.

Cyborg's human eye widened. "UH-UH!" he said. "The hell with that! You tore my baby to pieces the last time you sat behind the wheel! What, you want it so you can park it sideways on the damn escalator again? Hell no you can't burrow it!"

"Then how do you suppose I get to the mall?" Logan asked.

"I can think of one inconspicuous way…" Cyborg said, smirking.

* * *

"What the fuck?! This is some bullshit right here!"

Logan stood on the side of the street just on the shoreline of Jump City, the tower standing behind him.

"Well, it _is_ inconspicuous," Rose said as she waved her hand towards another yellow cab. "Just be glad Starfire dropped us off here. Way Cyborg looked, he'd probably have told you to swim across."

"Man, I can't believe he's still holding a fuckin' grudge!" the hero growled as another car passed them by. "Shit happened three months ago! What's he care about more: me, or the car?"

"I don't think you want me to answer that question," Rose said, sighing as another cab passed them up. "Shit! Maybe we should just walk…Wait! Here's come one now!"

Logan looked in the direction of the vehicle. His eyes caught a glimpse of the driver. Strange…it was almost as if he had seen him before…

* * *

Roman Hajji pressed down on the brake pedal as he spotted another fare. Business was going well for him, but life had not been. His medical bills were almost paid off, but his family was struggling to get by. All because of that one fare three months ago…

His eyes widened. That…that couldn't be…

It was. The son of a bitch who pulled him out of his car and allowed him to get stomped by a crowd of overzealous patriots.

"No, no, no!" he shouted to himself. "Not here…not again!"

* * *

Rose stepped back as the cab took off at a high rate of speed, leaving her in a stunned state.

"Jeez-us!" she yelled, watching the car speed off down the road and whipping around a corner. "What the fuck was that all about?"

"Hmm," Logan muttered. "Guess Cy's not the only one to hold a grudge…"

"What?" Rose asked.

"Nothing," he quipped. "Let's take this one."

* * *

_The cab pulls up to the outside of the mall. Judging by the look on Rose's face, it's not a moment too soon. The second the vehicle stops she's out the door, her hands over her ears. Sighing, I pay the driver and step back out into the sunshine._

"God, that was just awful," the girl said as the cab took off.

"You're being ridiculous," Logan said, shaking his head.

"Hey! You fell out of a helicopter and now you're Tony fucking Stark!" Rose said, frustrated. "If there's anyone here who's ridiculous right now, it's you!"

"Come on, it was only music!" the Titan said, throwing his hands up into the air.

"Yeah, bad music!" the girl said. "What kind of lame-ass band plays a song like that?"

Logan looked at the ground. "Cheap Trick…" he mumbled.

"What?"

"Nothing. Let's get inside."

The two Titans stepped through the doors of the building. As they did so, Logan began singing out softly:

"I want you to want me…"

"SHUT UP!"

* * *

The paper crinkled as Gizmo grabbed hold of the soft pretzel. This…this was the life. No more classes, no more books, no more snide remarks from up and coming punkasses – the only person he answered to was HER. All that had been asked of him was to make himself seen in Jump City. Easy enough – nothing difficult about that. Just hang around the food court and jam out in the arcade all day. Man, he got it made…

The villain stopped. His eyes widened. His jaw dropped, exposing half-chewed pieces of pretzel. No, it couldn't be…

* * *

"Well, the mall's a good place to hide," Rose said, looking around at the crowd. "Wonder how we'll find him."

"Gizmo's a creature of habit," Logan said, eying the food court. "Every time he comes to the mall, he just has to get a soft pretzel. Can't blame him. Things are damn good…"

_My eyes lock on to the bald head. Judging by the look on his face, he saw me first. Doesn't matter. I'll be the last thing he ever sees…_

"HEY, JACKASS!" Logan shouted. "YOU GOT WHAT I NEED!"

Without hesitation, the Titan charged across the mall floor towards the court. Seeing him coming, Gizmo dropped the pretzel.

"You gotta be kidding me…" he said, his voice cracking in fear. Suddenly, his brain got back into gear. Self-preservation kicking in…

His feet pounded the tile as the pint-sized villain took off towards the escalator. Rose, meanwhile, couldn't help but smirk.

"Well, that's a good way to call him out," she said. Her hand reached for her gun, but she stopped. Too much collateral damage to be a good idea. "Shit, can't get a bead on him!"

"Fuck it! He's headed for the parking garage!" Logan said, taking off in hot pursuit. "Get outside! We'll cut him off!"

The two Titans split up. Hopefully between them they'd get their hands on the prize.

Gizmo's feet left the ground as he hopped up onto the escalator. Pushing people out of his way, he sought to stay just one step ahead of Logan. His mind, on the other hand, was already in Bolivia at the rate it was running.

"Shit! What's he doing here?" he thought out loud as he jumped over a bench. "Last time I saw that snotwad his chest was wide open! How the hell's he still alive?!"

_Reaching the top of the escalator, I see that fuckin' midget heading out the maintenance door. Funny, that was me the last time I was in this place. Nice to be on the other side for a change. My feet move faster than they've ever gone as I follow him into the back. Gotta stop him before he hits the garage. Doubt he's got a car, but he probably has a ride. Like it or not, I can't outrun a car…at least, not anymore._

_The door nearly comes off the hinges as I explode out onto the concrete. Gizmo's still running. Shit…I hate when I'm right…_

Kyd Wykyd flinched as Gizmo rapped on the window. Since the pint-sized villain had been welcomed back into the H.I.V.E. fold, Wykyd had been charged with being his chauffer. Not the kind of job that gets you laid, but at least it was easy…usually.

"Start the car, dude!" Gizmo said as he hopped in the passenger seat, the red cooler clenched firmly in arms.

"Why?" Wykyd asked.

"Look in the mirror!" the villain said.

The driver took one glance – and just about shit himself. "LOGAN!" he screeched. "FUCK!"

Key in the ignition. Pedal to the floor. The little import took off like a bat out of Hell. Still, the confines of the parking garage made it difficult to go balls out, leaving the villains in a tough spot. With no room to move, Wykyd threw the car in reverse – and took off down the ramp!

Logan growled as he continued to run. The hood of the car remained just out of reach as he ran for broke.

"HA HA HA! SUCK ON THAT, SNOTHEAD!" Gizmo said, leaning out the window and delivering a one-finger salute. Quickly he ducked back inside – Logan had managed to grab the side mirror and wrench it off the door before hurling it back at the car. Wykyd hit the gas, and left the furious Titan in the dust.

_Fuckers! Well, there's more than one way down this jungle gym. I run over to the edge of the structure. Hmm, if I drop down level by level, I can cut them off at the pass…provided I can grab the ledge. Drop'll probably kill me. Then again…_

Rose rounded the corner just in time to see the import tear out of the ground level of the garage. Her pistol flew from its holster as she took aim at the cab. The gun didn't fire, however. Probably because the girl was too stunned by what she was seeing…

"Dude, we totally smoked that guy!" Gizmo said, slapping Wykyd a high five. The festivities were cut short, however, as Logan landed on the hood of the car, an evil grin on his face!

"OH, FUCK!" the small villain hollered as the hero leaned over to the window.

"Hmm, did I land on a pot of gold?" he asked. "'Cause I thought I just heard a fuckin' leprechaun!"

Quickly, Logan reached out for the cooler. Gizmo fought back as the hero struggled to hold onto the doorframe.

"Give me the cooler, you Mini-Me looking motherfucker!"

"Not a chance in Hell!" Gizmo shot back.

As Kid Wykyd spun the car back around, Logan was tossed off to the side. Still, he hung onto the door, his shoes smoking as the vehicle dragged him across the asphalt. With one final wild turn, the villains broke the Titan's grip, leaving him sprawled out on the sidewalk as they took off out the road. Feeling smug, Gizmo leaned out the window on e more time.

"FUCK YOU, LOGAN!" he shouted as the car disappeared around the corner.

Logan got back to his feet quickly, and shot an angry glance at Rose.

"You're fuckin' useless!" he shouted, dusting himself off. "You had the perfect shot and you blew it!"

"For your information, Mr. High and Fuckin' Mighty, I did manage to get a shot off!" the girl said, tucking the gun back into the holster.

Yeah? Where?" Logan asked.

"In the bumper," Rose said. "It's a tracker bullet. As long as he doesn't leave Jump City I'll be able to pinpoint his exact location."

"Well, that's wonderful," the Titan said, sighing. "Of course, if you had taken the first shot when you had the chance, we wouldn't have to TRACK HIM!"

"Get off my case!" the girl screamed, getting right in Logan's face. "I didn't see you do any better!"

"Oh yeah?!" the green man shot back. "Whataya gonna do about it?!"

The two stood for a moment, glaring at one another.

"Jesus…" Rose muttered, closing her eyes. "I don't know whether to kill you or kiss you."

"Let's…uh, just call it even, okay?" Logan said, looking back towards the mall. That's when he got a glimpse of trouble. "Oh, shit – Five-o at twelve!"

Rose spun around. Logan was right – about ten officers were closing in on their position.

"Shit!" Instinct made her reach for her gun, but restraint held her back. These guys were just doing their job…even if it interfered with hers.

Her heart pounded. In twenty seconds they would be on them, and it wouldn't be pretty…

The two heroes stepped back as a black limo cut off the path of the advancing officers. The back door opened up, and a familiar face leaned out.

"GET IN!" a voice said.

Logan and Rose looked at one another.

"Lesser of two evils?" the girl asked.

"Why not?" the hero responded.

With little time, the two hopped into the vehicle, and left the police far behind.


	10. Romeo Bleeding

Logan and Rose sat in silence. The limousine was crowded, as one man sat next to them and two across the seat. The two up front were part of the gang as well. One look told the two Titans that they were henchmen – albeit, nicely dressed henchmen. Such a nice change of pace. Sitting in the middle was their apparent saving grace.

"Well, well, well," he said. "Looks like the tabloids were right – you are still alive."

Logan grimaced. "Nice to see you, Rancid," he growled.

Heavy metal super villain Johnny Rancid sat before the heroes, his long greasy black hair hanging limply on each side of his head.

"Of course, I already knew that shit, so I guess it's kind of a drag," the villain said with a laugh.

"Good for you," Rose said, glaring at Rancid. "So what's the big idea pulling our bacon out of the fire like that?"

Rancid cocked his head to the side. "What, I can't give the city's biggest menace a ride away from the bad ol' coppers?" he said, smiling.

"Cut the shit, Johnny," Logan said, narrowing his eyes. "What do you want?"

The villain crossed his arms over his chest. "Straight to the point," he mumbled. "Okay, then. I'm guessing that you and your friends are probably wondering why the H.I.V.E. is alive and kicking – much like you."

"It's on our list," Rose said, her hand resting on her gun.

"Well, when Mr. Logan's rampage through the city resulted in Brother Blood's death, villains everywhere were afraid that the institution's days were numbered. However, we had a secret benefactor who stepped in to save the day."

"Who?" Logan asked, leaning forward.

Rancid smiled. "Oh, I think you've been schooled by him before…" he teased.

_Schooled? Wait a minute…Star and I…_

_Fuck…_

"Mad Mod," Logan said, growling.

Rancid laughed. "And Raven always said you were the dumb one," he mused. "Anyway, Mod stepped into control of the H.I.V.E. and used his own fortunes to get it back into operational shape. The school had never looked better…and that's when it happened."

"What happened?" Rose asked.

Rancid opened his mouth to speak…

_Shit…I'm dancing with the devil right now in my chest…Gotta be something in here that can help me…Hey, is that a cigarette lighter?_

"Mod was addressing the graduating class when he collapsed on the podium…" the villain said as he watched Logan slump over in his seat. As he paused, the hero licked the end of his forefinger as he pulled the lighter from its socket. Driving the finger into the hole, Logan shot up as the electricity recharged him. After a few moments, he withdrew his finger and left the plug smoking.

"Ugh, I taste metal," the Titan said as he sat back up. "Sorry about that. You were saying?"

"Right," Rancid said, eying the burnt-out socket. "Well, Mod was rushed to the infirmary. The cause: Heart attack. The aging villain's pumper was far too gone from all the stress and the shit he smoked, snorted, and took rectally all through his hippie days. Many villains, in order to save the H.I.V.E., would have given the heart from their own chest to save Mod's life…but not me. Fuck that…but many."

"So, what's this got to do with me?" Logan asked.

The villain leaned forward. "While we were scouting potential donors, one of our contacts caught wind of a black market organ scheme running right here in the city – right under the Titans' noses. They claimed they had a heart that was so powerful, it had survived the deadliest poison known to man…twice."

_Images flash through my mind. The "F-U-C-K-Y-O-U" DVD, the chase with Adonis, The sprint from the hospital, the rooftop showdown…_

_The image of the needle going into my neck…_

"'The Black Hand of Doom'," the Titan stated.

Rancid smiled. "Yes," he said. "It was _your_ heart, Logan, which Mad Mod chose to replace his own."

Logan sniffed, and shook his head. "Well, it's been mighty white of you to help me out," he said. "Now if you can just pull this canoe over, since we're not far from the tower…"

That when he heard the CLICK…make that CLICKS. Each of the henchmen in the back had pulled weapons and now had them trained on the two Titans.

"Who said I was helping you?" Rancid said, smiling. "I just wanted you to know what the deal was before you die. The acting headmaster will pay me handsomely for bringing you in." Pausing, he shot a glance over at Rose. "As for you, Ms. Wilson: your father says hi. He also says that you working with the Titans is an unforgivable sin."

Looking to his right, the villain grinned. "Kill the little cunt," he said.

Guns up, fingers pulling back…

_Too little space, too little time. I do the one thing I can think of doing…_

_The henchmen on my right hollers as I pull him across my body, providing cover for Rose and myself. I pull the Mac-11 from his belt and begin unloading on the boys across the seat. Rose is screaming. By the look in her eyes, it's not in fear. Her guns are up, sending hot lead in the same direction I'm sending mine. The car swerves to the left, then to the right. Bullets must have punctured the back of the wall and on into the cab. Tough shit. Maybe they'll spring for bulletproof shielding in the next life._

_Henchmen are down. Rancid looks like he's about to shit. Given the smell he might already have. Standing up the best I can in the vehicle, I unload the remainder of the clip into the bastard's chest. No use to me now. Car's still out of control. Looking out the windshield, I can see a lamppost coming up fast. Only one thing to say now…_

"Tea…and crumpets…"

_The limo collides with the pole, wrenching it loose from its' stand. Car putters on for a few more feet until it hits a wall. Dead stop – in more ways than one…_

The back door of the limo opened as Logan reemerged into the sunlight. Tossing the Mac-11 away, he grimaced as he looked down at his waistband. The .45 he had pocketed earlier was gone – probably lost from the chase he had with Gizmo. Reaching back inside the vehicle, he found a nice little XD-9 to replace it. Standing back up, he watched as the other door opened and Rose tumbled out onto the asphalt.

"FUCK!" she screamed, wiping the blood off of her face. "Oh, the Titans are just gonna love this! I promised them I wouldn't take any more lives!"

"Yeah, well that promise nearly got you killed," Logan said, shaking his head. "We're gonna need every skill we got in order to settle this thing!"

"Easy for you to say!" the girl said, snapping the holster back shut. "None of them suspected you were a trained killer until you went on your little run! I didn't have that luxury, dickweed!"

"Boo-fucking-hoo," Logan said, walking back towards the shoreline. "My ass bleeds for you!"

"You got some balls, Logan!" Rose said, walking up behind the Titan. "Be thankful I don't cut 'em off and show 'em to you!"

"You little…" the green man stopped as he heard the cell ring. Better take it. Probably a more stimulating conversation than this one was.

* * *

"Yo," Logan said.

"BB, its' Lad," the voice said. "I got some info for you. Turns out that your heart was being scouted for transplant to none other than…"

"Mad Mod," the Titan finished.

"Shit!" Aqualad said. "How did you know?"

"Got my own source," Logan said, sighing. "Too bad it's a bit of a dead end at this point."

"Usually is with you," The Titan said.

"Well, once I get my hands on Gizmo then Mod's my next target," the hero said. "I'll put the H.I.V.E. away once and for all."

"BB, I gotta talk to you about that," Lad began. "The truth is that -!"

"Lad, I got another call," Logan interrupted. "Probably from the Tower. I'll hit ya back in a bit. Late."

"BB, WAIT!" Aqualad sighed as the line when dead. "Dammit, I hate it when he does that," he mumbled to himself.

* * *

"Yo, what's up?" Logan said again.

"BB, it's Robin," the Titan's voice came in loud and clear. "Cy's almost got your battery pack ready. This one's smooth, sleek, and stylish. Also lasts for about four hours."

"Well, that'll do," Logan said. "Rose said she hit the back of Gizmo's car with a tracer. See if you can get me a signal. We'll be back at the tower in a few."

"Okay, just be careful," Robin said as he stepped into the living room. Suddenly, he came to a stop. Looking into the room, he had to blink his eyes a few times, just to see if his mind was playing tricks on him. They weren't.

"Oh my God," he said quietly.

* * *

She stood before the young hero. Her face was as calm as the day she had joined them. Her dark hair framed her face the same way it always had. Her body lay deep behind the cloak, hiding it from view. She was back.

"Raven…" Robin said as he slowly closed his communicator. "You're…you're back."

The girl gave him a faint smile. "Yeah," she said. "Hopefully for good this time…that is, if you'll take me back."

The hero slowly approached the dark-haired girl. He wasn't quite sure how she had managed to overcome her grief, but he could feel the difference in the vibe she put out. It was…controlled, calm and collected. Whatever she had done to herself had worked. For how long would be the question.

Slowly, Robin sat Raven down on the couch, his hands in her. It was time.

"You are always welcome," he said, embracing her in a hug. Raven smiled as she felt the hero's arms around her body. This was the final test. She felt his arms, felt his heart beating…but he wasn't Beast Boy. Still, she kept her composure. The time away had allowed her to drive the pain and anger from her being, allowing her to recapture her former self. Garfield Logan would be in her minds forever, but at least she could live on without him.

"It is true," a voice emanated from the doorway. As the two heroes shot back up, Starfire and Jericho stood in the room, looking at them. "Raven, you are back!"

The girl allowed herself to be embraced by the Tamaranean. It would be a tight squeeze, but nothing she hadn't felt before. Jericho smiled at her, and nodded. He was more than happy to see her triumphant return. It was at this point that Cyborg made his own entrance into the room. His eyes, however, were locked on the little panel in his hands.

"Robin, I got the pack ready, but I have heard from him yet…" the mechanical man trailed off as he noticed Raven standing among the Titans. "RAE?! Oh man, You're back!"

"Cyborg, wait, wait, I already had one tight hug to-DAY!" the girl grunted as Cy picked her up and swung her around.

"Raven, are you alright?" Robin asked, eying the girl's pained face.

"I'm cool," she managed to get out. "Besides, ribcages are overrated, anyway."

"Man, this is a miracle!" Cyborg said as he put Raven back down on the floor. "The team's back together, baby!"

The girl looked down at the floor. "Well, as back together as we can ever be," she muttered.

The room grew deathly silent as the other heroes shot each other nervous looks. Should they break the news to her? How would she react?

"Um, Raven, there's something we need to talk to you about," Robin said, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder.

The Titan looked up, confusion and worry in her eyes. "What it is?" she asked.

Robin opened his mouth to begin…

* * *

_DING._

All eyes turned to the elevator as the doors opened up.

"…and you certainly haven't gotten any smarter since you took that swan dive out of the copter!" Rose shouted as she stepped from the metal box.

"Well excuse me!" Logan shot back. "I haven't exactly taken time out of my busy fuckin' day to visit the library!"

"You never visit the library!" the girl shot back, unaware of the eyes that were upon the two of them.

"Only when I wanna hide!" the green man said. "Nobody'd think to look for me there!"

"Probably because they'd think you were illiter…ate…" Rose turned her head and caught sight of the Titans staring back at her. "Oh shit…hey, y'all, what's up?"

"Get outta my way!" Logan said, pushing past the girl with his eyes on Cyborg. "Yo Cy, you got my belt ready yet…?"

_I see her standing among the group. Her eyes are opened wide, her jaw slack. Mind's racing. When did she get back? Then again, I'm betting a similar question is running through her mind about me. My feet feel like lead. It's not the heart's fault this time, however. The two of us slowly walk towards one another, each trying to figure out whether or not this was some sort of dream. Can't be. Won't let it be…_

_I grin as I take her in. My arms open up as I quicken my pace. My baby, home at last…_

SLAP!

Raven's left hand cuts across Logan's right cheek, stopping him in his tracks. His head snaps to the side as she slaps the smile right off his face.

"Okay, I probably deserved that," he muttered as he looked back into her eyes.

SLAP!

The hand comes across again.

"Okay, not quite sure about that one," he said, irritated.

SLAP!

"Would you stop hitting me?!" he shouted as Raven hit him a third time.

"Why should I?" the girl said, harshly. "You deserve every bit of this! I thought you were dead, Beast Boy! Do you know what you did to me?!"

The hand came sailing across the room once again. This time, however, the green man managed to catch it in his palm. Undeterred, Raven swung her other hand at his face. That one too landed in Logan's outstretched hand. Quickly, he pulled her hands down in front of her body.

"Look, calm down, dammit!" he shouted as Raven fought against his grip. "I didn't want to hurt you! I promise!"

"Bullshit!" Raven cursed, struggling to free her hands. "You disappeared! You left us to mourn you, you asshole! Where the hell have you been?!"  
"I don't fuckin' know!" the hero shouted. "I didn't expect anything else after I hit that car! You think I'd hurt you on purpose?!"

_Her eyes are filled with anger, betrayal, hate. She doesn't know. How could she? The Titans didn't know until a little while ago. Can't blame her for hating me. I left her with a kiss on that rooftop and disappeared into the ether, left her to deal with the pain of my death and the emotions of that final kiss. If I could take it back, you know I fuckin' would. It's just not in the cards. Guess this was not the best course of action after all…_

_Suddenly, I feel it. Her lips are upon mine. I loosen up my grip on her hands, and they encircle me. My own hands are down by my side. Not the response I was expecting. If I had guessed, I would have been halfway embedded in the wall by now. Maybe there was still something here after all…_

The other Titans looked away as Raven embraced Logan with white hot passion. Rose chuckled to herself.

"Guess the love outweighs the hate in that relationship," she muttered under her breath.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Raven's lips parted from Logan's, leaving both of them in a rather bewildered state.

"You still hate me?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll get over it," the girl said, breaking into a huge smile.

_Well, that was __**really **__unexpected. _


	11. Fire It Up

"So they took your heart?" Raven said, her eyes like saucers as Logan sat on the examination table in the medical wing.

"Yep," the hero said as Cyborg strapped the battery belt around his waist. His shirt was off for the moment, exposing the ten-inch scar on his chest. "Gizmo's got it right now, and if I want to live long enough for you and I to keep arguing, I need to find him – and fast."

"Okay, BB," Cyborg said as he finished fastening the Velcro strap. " Belt's looking good. All I need to do is attach the wire and…"

_Fuck…feels like someone just plugged me into the wall. Heart's running steady again. No creaks, no cracks, no 'oh shit' feelings. I'm back in action again…_

Raven leaned back as Logan straightened up. It was evident that he was feeling the juice.

"Are you alright?" she asked, a worried look on her face.

Logan flashed a grin. "Better than ever," he said.

"Listen, BB," Cyborg said as he put away his tools. "That battery's stronger that steel, but that still don't make it indestructible."

"Unlike the man it's attached to," Rose quipped from the doorway with a smile.

The mechanical Titan chuckled. "Anyway, just be careful with this one, alright?"

"Gotcha," Logan said, hopping off the table. Eying Rose, he said, "You guys got a lock on Gizmo yet?"

"No, but Robin's running the scan," the girl said. "Let's go see what he's got."

"Right behind ya," Logan said. This left both Raven and Cyborg alone in the room for a moment.

"Cyborg," the girl said, quietly. "If we manage to get his heart back…can we really put it back in?"

The Titan sighed as he examined the surgical tools near the table. "I guess we really don't have a choice, do we?" he said. "I mean, this stuff works in theory and I've tested the equipment, but in the end it's all gonna come down to BB's tenacity. I just hope he has enough when the time comes."

"He will," Raven said as she got back to her feet. "I know he will."

Cyborg smiled as he put an arm around his friend. "For his sake, I hope you're right," he said as they left the room.

* * *

"So, we got a location or what?" Logan said, glancing up at the big screen. Looks like the Titans had replaced it after his meltdown on that day. He winched, wondering how much that was going to cost him.

"Almost…BINGO!" Robin said as the tracker came up on the screen. "Looks like he's down at the record store on Wigwam and Hanover."

"That about three blocks away," Logan said, punching a fist into his other hand. 'Time to give that mother what for."

"Wait a minute…" the Boy Wonder said, looking back at the hero. "You're not doing this on your own! You're not well!"

"I'll be fine enough," the green man said, waving his hand. As he turned towards the elevator, he found Raven blocking his path.

"You're not going alone," she said, her voice sharp as a dagger.

"I'm not involving you," the hero shot back.

"Why won't you take our assistance?" the girl said, angrily. "Why must you be so damn stubborn?!"

"Because this is my fight!" Logan said, firmly. "I won't jeopardize your lives for mine!"

"I can't let you do that!" Raven said, her voice strangely cracking.

"Why not?" the Titan asked.

"BECAUSE I CAN"T LOSE YOU!" the girl screamed, grabbing Logan's shoulders with her hands as she staggered forward. The grief was bubbling back to the surface. Shaking her head, she hid her face as tears streamed down it. "Not again…I'm…I'm not strong enough to handle it."

Slowly, the hero pulled the girl back up to her feet, his hand under her chin. As she looked back up, he smiled.

"You'll never lose me," he said. "But I can't lose any of you, either."

Robin pondered for a moment as Logan held Raven in his arms. "Hold on," he said, reaching into his utility belt. "I have an idea."

All eyes were on the Boy Wonder as he pulled a Titan communicator from a pouch. "This communicator is a prototype," he said as he handed it to Logan. "If you find yourself in over your head, press the red button on the top. The communicator will short-circuit, but at the same time it'll send out a distress beacon. We'll be there in a flash."

Logan nodded as he affixed the communicator to his belt. "Something tells me I might be needing this before it's all over," he said, smirking. Looking back up at the heroes, he grew quiet for the moment.

"You guys are the best, you know?" he said. "Keep the tab going. I wanna know how much you'll be cutting from my check when it's all over."

"Trust me, you ain't gonna like it," Cyborg quipped.

As Logan looked towards the elevator, he pulled Raven closer to him. With one swift motion, he planted another kiss on her lips. This time, she didn't move at all.

"Well, you've hit me three times," he said as they separated. "and we've kissed three times. I'd say we're even."

"Don't bet on it," Raven said with a smile. "Just…come back, alright?"

"Planning on it," Logan said as he headed for the elevator.

* * *

_As the doors closed, I had time to reflect on the events that happened up to this point. Crazy shit abound, the Titans were back together and ready to save the day. All because of me. The will to fight was strengthened by my triumphant return. Well, Garfield, I guess you better not fuck this one up…_

_Doors open down in the garage. Gotta get down to the record store. Hmm, Cy-car's up on the skids. Cy's probably working maintenance. Don't feel like walking, not in the mood for another cab ride…_

_My eyes fall on it. I've loved it ever since I first saw it all those years ago. Hmm, judging by all the shit I still gotta do, my chance for survival ain't exactly guaranteed. Might not get another chance. Oh…he is gonna be pissed…_

* * *

_DING_.

The elevator doors opened again as Cyborg and Robin exited the confines.

"Man, you know he's crazy, right?" the mechanical Titan said, shaking his head. "Finding gizmo's one thing, but a one-man war against the H.I.V.E.? I think he's taken too many jolts to the brain."

"Well, hopefully that won't be the case. Maybe he'll smarten up and give us a call…" Robin trailed off as he eyed the open space on the garage floor. Glancing around, a befuddled look came over his face.

"Cyborg…" he said, slowly, "where's my motorcycle?"

* * *

VROOM!!

_Cars swerve out of the way as I rocket onto the streets. The people on the sidewalk are a blur as I speed down the road like a bat out of Hell. Damn. Now I know why Robin likes riding this thing. Packs more of a punch than a Taser to the balls. I chuckle to myself. Here I am again, driving a friend's treasured vehicle into the unknown. This time would be different, however. I wouldn't total this one._

_I hope._


	12. Achey Breaky Heart

_I idle the bike down as I approach the record store. Front looks pretty quiet. Pushing out the kickstand, I get off the crotch rocket and start my way across the street. No cars coming, should be a breeze. Suddenly, I see one coming down the road. I take a look. No…Can't be. It is. The Good Samaritans from earlier. Great, just what I fuckin' needed._

The car slowed to a crawl as they came up to Logan.

"Holy shit, dude!" the passenger said. "You're still alive!"

"For the moment," the Titan said.

"Man, the po-po really want your ass!" the guy said, laughing at his buddy. "What the fuck you do?"

"I lived," Logan said.

"Damn, now that is some racist shit!" the passenger said. "You need some help?"

"I need you to get out of here," the Titan said, heading up towards the record store. The two dipshits in the car didn't get the hint, though. The vehicle rolled back as the two kept pace with the hero.

"Yo, I think you owe us, man," the passenger said. "We juiced you up. Now I think you better give us a good reason not to run your sorry ass in and get the reward."

"How about 14 good fuckin' reasons?!" Logan shouted, pulling the XD-9 from his belt and aiming it into the cab.

"OH SHIT!" the passenger shouted as his buddy jerked the car back into gear and slammed on the pedal.

_Hmm, worked better than I thought. Wasn't gonna shoot them, but didn't have time to play 20 fuckin' questions. I watch as they go tires screeching into the intersection…_

_BAM!_

_I hit the ground as a pickup truck T-bones the car. Both vehicles are spinning wildly now, right towards the…you gotta be kidding me!_

_FUCK! I winch as the two tons of steel plow right over the bike like a fat kid falling on a balloon. Well, so much for that. That fuckin' tab's getting higher by the second. So much for it being a breeze as well. Two twisted wrecks smoking on the sidewalk, water gushing out from a hydrant they took out during the spin, and Robin's pride and joy buried somewhere under that heap of metal. Real fuckin' inconspicuous. Someone upstairs is laughing his ass off at me…_

"Whoa, shit!" Gizmo said as he eyed the wreckage from across the street. Well, him and his two bodyguards. The last confrontation with Logan had made him wary of what could be waiting out there for him. Now, with two of _HER_ boys shadowing him, he felt invincible. That was, until his eyes fell towards the middle of the street.

_I see him as soon as he sees me. He's got two bangers with him. They're armed, and it doesn't take long for them to pull. XD-9's already in my hand. Good. I feel like shooting someone – someone who deserves it. _

_Shots echo out in the streets as the bangers and I exchange pleasantries. One hits the concrete, dead as a door nail. Gizmo's headed for the car. Nuh-uh, Mr. Leprechaun Man – fuck you and your lucky charms._

As Gizmo reached for the door handle, he looked inside just in time to see Kid Wykyd's brains splatter out onto the dashboard. Slumping forward, the villain's foot floored the pedal, sending the car off down the road as the pint-sized bad guy jumped back.

"FUCK!" he screamed as the car flipped over another parked car and slid even further down the street. "And now I have to run!"

_Run, run as fast as you can. But you can't escape me, little man. Wykyd's hit the skids. Nowhere to go but on foot. The other banger hightails it up to Gizmo's position, still shooting back as they round the corner. I'm right behind them. Gizmo's booking like his life depended on it. Good thing – 'cause it does. The banger's taking potshots at me. Damn near catches me in the battery. Hey, numbnuts! I need that! Time to put you down for the count…_

_BANG!_

_He drops like a stone. As I pass him, I give him a word of encouragement…_

"BITCH!" Logan yelled as he tossed the spent gun.

_Okay, maybe not that encouraging. But he's not gonna need it where he's going. I'm full throttle now. Battery's holding steady. I could kiss you, Cyborg. But I won't. No need to make Raven jealous. Then again, I wonder how'd she react if she learned how Rose kept my heart pumping at her apartment…_

_As I closed the distance, I made a mental note not to mention that to her the next time I see her. No need to get slapped again for staying alive by all means necessary._

_Gizmo's right next to the power plant. My mind races as he hurls the cooler over the barb-wire fence. If that little turd fucks up my heart…Hmm, maybe I could take his…_

_Anyway, he's up and over the fence like a cat. I follow right behind, barbs cutting my hands as I vault over the top. No time to bleed. I gotta catch me a gnome._

_I can hear the wires buzzing with current as I slowly make my way through the maze of pylons and transformers. Gizmo could be anywhere. Gotta be ready for anything…_

Logan stumbled back as the pint-sized villain caught him in the face with the cooler. He smiled as the Titan staggered back into an exposed panel. God, this would be a show…

_My body tightens up as the current courses through my veins. Heart's pumping like a jackhammer on rocket fuel. Never felt so fucked up and alive at the same time. Goddamn, if I ever got my heart back, would I be able to wean myself off this shit? Guess I'll find out so enough…_

_Springing back forward from the panel, Gizmo looks like he's about to drop dead. Fitting, since he'd spent all day being chased by a ghost. Time to finish this…_

_The energy crackled as the two Titanic warriors collided head to head. Nothing of this caliber had been seen before in this city, and it would probably never be seen again. The ground trembled under the weight of their combined fury as the helpless little people ran for cover. This was a battle for the ages…_

"Yo, you think we should call the cops?" one technician asked the other.

"Couldn't hurt," the other responded as he watched Logan pound away at the face of the floored villain.

_Okay, maybe it wasn't that epic, but I still feel like Godzilla. Chev Chelios ain't got shit on me. Can't believe that Rose didn't know who I was talking about. Those were some good fuckin' movies! I mean, who hasn't seen CRA-_

_Damn. Sorry. Getting off topic. Back to our regularly scheduled program…_

Gizmo fell back as Logan drove one more punch home. Posturing back up, the Titan looked around on the ground.

"Now where is my heart?" he mumbled to himself. Quickly, he located the cooler, and picked it up.

"NO!" Gizmo cried. "YOU CAN'T LOOK IN THE BOX!"

_Fuck, he locked it. Can't break the lock…but I bet can break something else…_

Standing over the fallen villain, Logan hefted the cooler over his head.

_Open up and say "AHHHH!", asshole…_

Gizmo let out a horrific scream as the green man slammed the cooler with authority down on his forehead. Standing back up, Logan shook his head.

"Five more like that, and your brain's a strawberry smoothie," he said. Pointing at the front of the cooler, he growled.

"The key and the motherfucking combo," he said, firmly.

'NO!" Gizmo said, shaking his head violently.

"Suit yourself," Logan said, hefting the box up once again. Before he brought it down, however, the villain held his hands out in front of him.

"WAIT!" he screamed.

_Good monkey. I watch as he pops the key in place and inputs the code. The shackle popping open is the sweetest sound I've heard all day. Finally, I got it. I got my pumper back. Holding the cooler in my hand, my fingers grip the lid. Almost wanna savor the moment. I pop the top open…_

_What the fuck…_

Logan's eyes widened as he took in the sight before him. Gritting his teeth, he growled.

"This isn't my fucking heart!" he screamed.

Cocking his head to the side, a perplexed look came over the Titan's face.

"What is that?" he said. The answer seemed too illusive for him to make out. Angrily, he closed the lid to the cooler.

"I swear, I am shocked to my goddamn core," he said, glaring down at the bloodied Gizmo. "You've got some serious fuckin' problems, man. Who the hell carries that kind of shit around in a box with them?"

_My curiosity knows no bounds. Slowly, I open the cooler lid again…_

"What the FUCK is that?!" he shouted. Disgusted, he tossed the cooler back down on the ground. Like a snake, the villain grabbed the box and clutched it to his chest.

_Well, this was fucking waste of time. Might as well give Aqualad a call. See if he knows where the heart's gotten off to…_

* * *

Aqualad sat in his room, staring at an article in a magazine. This one, however, had nothing to do with tits. This article covered the construction and inner mechanics of the AviCor heart.

"Okay, so the doohickey connects to the whatchamacallit by way of the thingamabob, and…and what the fuck is this?" he muttered to himself as he circled an image on the page and marked it with exactly what he had said. "What the fuck is this motherfucker…?"

The hero sat up as the cell went off.

"Yo," he said.

"Aqualad, it's BB," Logan said.

"Dude, when you hung up on me last time, I was trying to tell you something pretty damn important," the hero said irritatingly. "Your heart's gone to Mod."

"You already told me that," Logan said.

"No, I mean it's _really_ gone to him," Lad said, quickly. "He received the transplant about three weeks ago."

"FUCK!" Logan shouted. His lead had turned into nothing more than a wild goose chase. "Well, tell me where he is and I'll starting kicking down doors."

"Doubt that'll do any good," Lad said, sighing. "Mod's in London, scoping the Red Light District. Looks like he wants to put your heart to the real test. Look, he's got what you need in pristine working condition."

"Get it from him," Logan said, sternly.

"Don't worry," the aquatic hero said. "I've got people out on the street."

The Titan smiled as he reminisced that moment he had explained his plan over the two-way screen. The look on Argent's face had been priceless when she realized what she would need to do in order to corner the villain. "You owe me bloody fuckin' big time!" – that's what she had said. But with Logan's life on the line, she had agreed to the ruse. It wouldn't be any fun, but it would work.

"Well, I'll try it my way," the Titan said. "Late."

As the phone hung up, Aqualad dialed out another number. Soon, another voice came alive on the phone.

"Hello?"

"Herald? It's Aqualad."

"Oh right. What's up?"

Lad smiled. "You ever been to London?"

* * *

_As I put the phone away, I glare back down at Gizmo. Last thing he's gonna do for me is give me an exact location of that limey bastard's whereabouts. Grabbing him by the collar, I hoist him into the air._

"Okay, Willow, you got one chance," he said, firmly. "Tell me: Where the fuck's Mod?"

"You'll never know, snotbreath!" Gizmo said from behind his bloody teeth. "The Headmistress'll see to that!"

"Yeah well –?" Logan cocked his head to the side "Did you say Head – MISTRESS…Fuck it! It doesn't matter!"

Grabbing him up by one hand, the Titan pointed his finger at the villain like a gun.

"Where the fuck's the old man?" he roared.

_BLAM! _

_I'm brought back to attention by the sound of a gunshot and the visage of Gizmo's head exploding right in my face. Dropping the villain, I take a good look at my finger. Pretty sure it wasn't loaded. Didn't have a habit of walking around with loaded fingers. So what was that…_

_Turning back around, I see three bangers starting back at me. The one in the middle is familiar. Tribal boy…_

_I hear a sound from behind me I look back just in time to see a pipe coming for my face. Good night Gracie…_

Rodolfo looked at his boys as Logan collapsed on the ground.

"What old man?" he asked.

The others simply shrugged their shoulders. It didn't matter, though. They had their prize.


	13. Intermission II

Bee's mouth hit the floor as the herald made a sudden and unexpected appearance in tower's living room.

"Jesus, don't you ever knock?" she said as the Titan stepped form the portal.

"Sorry, Mother," Herald quipped, smiling. "Aqualad here?"

Ready and waiting," the aquatic hero said as he entered the room.

"Um, you mind telling me what exactly you're doing?" Bumblebee said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Going for a ride in the old country," Lad said, imitating a British accent. "Pip-pip, cheerios, and all that good shit."

"Like hell you are!" Bee said, angrily. "You aren't going anywhere until I hear something!"

Aqualad and the Herald looked at one another for a moment. "Okay," the aquatic hero said, calmly. "How about this: Today, I got a call from a dead man. Right now, he's doing everything he can not to get dead again, and I'm his saving grace."

"Oh, really?" the girl said, frowning. "And this 'dead man' – he happen to have a name?"

Lad glanced back at the Herald. Might as well.

"It's Beast Boy," he said, firmly. "Survived the helicopter crash only to have someone take out his heart and give it to Mad Mod. Running on an electric one as we speak. Argent's on the streets looking for Mod in London while the Titans wait to hear back from BB in Jump City."

Bumblebee looked at the two men, an amused expression on her face.

"You expect me to swallow that bullshit?" she asked.

"Call Robin," Lad said, matter-of-factly. "He'll corroborate the story."

Letting out a laugh, the Titans East leader picked up the phone. "You're all a bunch of lunatics," she muttered as she dialed out. "Yes? Robin? Hey, it's Bee. Listen, you are not gonna believe the BS story Lad's been telling me up here…What? Yeah, but…Huh? You're serious? You're not just pulling my chain? Oh, damn…well, thanks. BYE!"

Hanging up the phone, the girl turned her attention back towards the two heroes.  
"So, how long's the flight to Jump City?" she asked.

Lad and the Herald just smiled.

* * *

Argent shivered as the rain poured down on the cobbled little streets of London's Red Light District. Granted the name sounds wonderful, but the term was reserved for an area of a city that one could find entertainment and company of a more…_personal _nature. With her hair slicked back behind her ears and her face heavily-made-up, the young girl ground her teeth in anger. Brilliant fucking plan Lad had for her. Figured that if Mod was going home to enjoy his new-found health, he'd probably indulge in a little…playing around.

Argent shivered again. The abbreviated attire did nothing to help her feel any warmer. Still, she could still feel her fingers and toes. That was a good sign…

On edge, the Titan practically yelped as her communicator went off. Fumbling in her pockets, she pulled it out and pressed the button.

"Yeah?" she asked, her British accent marred by her chattering teeth.

"Hmm, you look a little cold out there," Lad's voice came over the com. "Nice day for a warm fire and a hot cup of cocoa, eh?"

"Fuck you, you wanker," Argent cursed. "Why don't you come down here and stand in the rain?"

"Haven't got the legs for it," Lad said. "Herald and I are stationed about a block away in a one-story flat. You see Mod, you lead him this way. Got me?"

"If I don't die of pneumonia first," the girl said, feeling the rain soak down through her hot pants and into her underwear. Definitely not a cozy feeling.

"Oh, toughen up," Lad said. "You'll get him."

"Thanks for the encouragement, Lad," she said sarcastically. "Out."

Replacing the communicator, she shivered yet again as people strolled by, glaring at her. To them, she was nothing more than a little street whore. Hopefully Mod would see it that way as well…

* * *

The members of Titans East sat in stunned shock as Robin finished updating them on the situation.

"That…that just doesn't seem possible," Bee said, looking down at her hands.

"Jeez, BB's one tough son of a gun," Speedy said with a sigh. Mas, Menos, and Tremm seemed just as surprised with Logan's capacity to survive.

"I had trouble believing it myself when I first heard it," the Boy Wonder said. "We all did."

"Well, have you heard from him?" Bee asked, looking up at the Titan.

"No," Robin said, a worried look on his face. "Last time anyone in the city's seen him was down at the record store. I overheard something about a fistfight down at the power plant, but that was it. Thing's been dead for the past half-hour."

"Correction," Rose said, reappearing in the doorway. "Police broadcasts say they found Gizmo at the plant. Dead from a gunshot wound. Found a red cooler near him."

"What about Beast Boy?" Raven said, panicky.

Rose shook her head. "No sight of him," she said. "It's like he just…dropped off the grid."

The meaning of that sentence sent a chill through all in attendance.

"That's not good at all," Robin said. "I oughta see if I can track him."

"You do that," Rose said. "I'll keep an ear to the radio in case I hear anything else useful."

As the two Titans went about their business, the rest were left to wonder what had befallen the young hero…

* * *

Argent snapped her eyes open. The rain had slowed, but not nearly enough. Getting back on her feet, she surmised she had dozed off while leaning against a wall. If something had gone down, the communicator should have gone off…

That's when she saw it: A black limousine creeping down the edge of the sidewalk. Somebody looking for a good time.

Straightening back out, the Titan sighed. This was the first car of the day. Chance were slim that she'd even get picked, let alone by the one corrupt sicko she needed to bag. Needless to say, her expectations were very dim as the limo rolled up to her position. Still, she had to play the part to the end. Leaning towards the window, she smiled as much as her dignity would allow her to. The window came rolling down…

There he was. Clean pressed suit, his glasses sequined in fashion, and his hair bobbed like the Beatles. One first glance one might have mistaken him for Elton John or Ringo Starr, but this was a man with his own history of hits.

Argent's heart thumped in her chest. First pick of the day, and it had to be him.

It was Mad Mod, chipper as an aging British villain could be. His smile could have put a diabetic in anaphylactic shock. By the look of things, he didn't recognize the Titan.

"Well, well, well – what do we have here?" he said, looking the girl over. "Me likey. Me likey very much."

"What's your poison, big boy?" Argent said, grinning despite the overwhelming feeling of nausea in her stomach.

"Oh, I dabble in a little bit of this, and a little bit of that," Mod said, laughing. "Are you, by any chance…ticklish?"

The Titan's stomach rolled over as she imagined his hands ravaging her sensitive frame. "You know it," she said, managing to keep in character.

"Oh, looks like we got a live one," the villain said, directing his comments at the chauffer. "Come on, get in."

The door popped open. Argent slowly slid inside. Her nerve in her body was screaming at her to run, but she had to do this. Beast Boy counting on her, and she couldn't let him down. But she wanted to. Oh Lord, she wanted to.

"So, you got a place for us to, you know, get better acquainted?" Mod said, flexing his fingers. The girl wanted to scream, but she was in the final stretch. Just a little longer…

"Right up the street," she said, sultrily. "I like being in the neighborhood. Makes the deeds…that much easier to do."

Mod laughed out loud as he placed his hands on the young girl. "Smart girl…wait a tic…you're freezing! Well, no matter – I'm sure we'll get you all hot and flustered in a little bit!"

'Not on your life, fucker,' Argent though to herself. Still, she smiled as the limo continued on down the street.

* * *

"Have you found him yet?" Raven asked as Robin punched in a few buttons on the computer.

"Yes and no," the Boy wonder said. "I got a track on him, but there's some kind of…interference. All I can say for certain is that it's on the outskirts of the city."

"What's out there?" the girl asked.

"Farms, fields, cow manure…and BB," Robin said, shaking his head. Something wasn't right about this…

* * *

"Come on baby, just a bit further," Argent whispered as she tugged on Mod's jacket. The two were standing in the doorway of the small flat as the girl pulled the villain into the confines.

"My word, you certainly have a way about you," Mod said as he shed the jacket. "I hope you're ready for a fun time. I just can't wait to hear that laugh of yours. Hmm…I wonder how you'll scream?"

"Stop wondering and get in here," the girl teased from the other room. With a million dollar smile, the British villain entered the room...

Argent stood before him. So did Aqualad, a syringe of liquid in his hands. The Herald quickly moved to block the exit that Mod had just came in.

"Hey, did you miss the Queen's speech?" Lad said, grinning. "Here's the moral of the story: Karma's a bitch."

Looking around, the old villain knew nothing like this ever ended well, hero or otherwise.

"Oh, bugger…" he muttered as the three Titans moved in.


	14. A Taser To The

_SNAP-SNAP._

_SNAP-SNAP._

"Juice this mother fucker…"

_Not exactly the words you wanna wake up to. Nothing good comes from those words. I mean, did your father ever say that right before he gave you ice cream? Didn't think so. If he did, you probably came from a fucked-up family. Join the club._

_I snap back and let out a scream as they plant the metal prongs on me. You guys remember when I told you about something being 'like a Taser to the balls'? Well, looks like I was wrong. Nothing is quite like a Taser to the balls except for a Taser to the balls. Looks like I would learn this fact the old fashioned way._

_The prongs hit the sack again. To be honest, it's actually a cattle prod, but it all works the same way. Try it for yourself. Wait – better not. Unless you got good damn health insurance. You know, the ones that won't ask you why the fuck you stuck a Taser to your dick in the first place? Guys like that are getting harder to find in this day and age._

_The snapping stops. Looks like fun and games are over. Fine by me. Didn't plan on reproducing any time soon at my rate. The doors open in front of me, and the sunlight blinded the shit out of me. Blinking my eyes, I realize four of Tribal boy's buddies are dragging me across the concrete top of a pretty posh resort. Wait a sec…I've seen this layout before. Can't be…Fuck yea, it is! It's the H.I.V.E.! Damn – when did they get a heated pool? Shit, Titan Tower ain't even half as nice as this. Such a fuckin' shame it's all going to a bunch of douche bag do-badders. Still sliding on my knees. Gonna fuck up these pants if they keep at it. Then again, the pants are probably the least of my worries. Finally, we come to a stop. Down on my knees, I look up. I find myself staring at the ass of a shadowy figure. Not complaining, though. It's nice. Very feminine…_

_At least, I hope it's feminine…_

Rodolfo smirked as his boys backed off of Logan. His job was done. Now they could get paid.

"We have Logan, Headmistress," he said.

_The Headmistress…That's what Gizmo had said right before Tribal boy popped him. Guess when Mod took ill they hired this bitch to run the show. Good. Now I finally get to see the brains behind this fuckjob they pulled on me. Then I'll kill her._

_The figure turns around. Her eyes look down at me with a tint of lust and sadness. Don't know why, but something's not adding up here…_

_Oh God…it's her…No, it can't be! My emotions say no, but my mind speaks the truth. It is her… _

_Rita…_

Rita Farr stood before the young hero. Her robes matched that of Brother Blood's, but her mask still sat upon her face. She was the first face who ever showed the young Gar Logan compassion for his being. She was the one she had helped raise until that very day he broke free from the control of her husband.

She was Elasti-Girl. She was also the Headmistress of the H.I.V.E.

"Garfield," she said, a smile coming to her face. "It's been far too long."

"Rita, what the fuck is going on?" Logan growled as he took in the sight of his adopted mother in Blood's robes. "Why the fuck are you running the H.I.V.E.?"

Elasti-Girl smiled. "Call it multi-tasking," she said. "I've had a lot to do since Blood was killed."

"Fuck him," the hero said, spitting on the ground. "He was a bastard, and we both know that. What I don't get is why you're here. Why did Gizmo speak of you?"

"Oh, that little runt," Elasti-Girl said with a snort. "He was just a patsy, designed to draw you out and expose yourself."

_The wheels in my mind spin out of control as the pieces coming flying in. It's like the blender from Hell and I'm making smoothies for everyone in the damn city._

"What do you want with me?" he asked, dumbfounded.

Rita's face hardened as she knelt down to look him in the eyes. "I knew your heart would survive," she said, coldly as she cocked her head to the side. "I knew _you_ could survive. Mod's incident gave me the chance to put myself in the position I would need in order to carry out my plan."

"And what plan is that?" Logan asked, grimacing.

The woman stood back up, a sad look crossing her face. "You know, Gar," she said quietly, "I loved you like a son. Granted, you were always treated like a dog, but I knew you could survive. I almost had hope you would become the greatest Doom Agent in the world."

Like that, the sadness was gone, quickly replaced by a wave of anger. "But you did something unforgivable," she said. "Something I just couldn't…forget."

Glaring down at the green man, a single tear rolled down her stoic face.

"You killed Steve…" she said, firmly.

_The fight in the copter flashed before my eyes…my hands around his neck…the snap…_

"Mento," he said, coldly. "Hope he's burning in Hell now."

"He was my husband, Gar!" Rita said, grabbing her hair in frustration. "You killed him, and you don't even seem sorry about it!"

"Guess he taught me too well," Logan said, smirking.

"Shut your fucking mouth!" the woman said, slapping him across the face. It was then that she saw the communicator on his belt.

"Rodolfo, give that to me," she said, quickly. Miguel plucked the device off the Titan and handed it to the headmistress as she made a "tsk-tsk" sound.

"You and your toys," she said. "No wonder Steve wanted to kill you all."

With that, she smiled.

"Call for help on this, little boy," she said, pressing down on the red button. Sparks shot from the device as she tossed it into the pool.

_Thanks a lot, Rita. You just made my day…_

* * *

Robin's eyes glanced up at the screen as a loud siren went off.

"The communicator!" he said. "I got a lock!"

Quickly, the other Titans gathered around the screen like moths to a flame.

"Where is he?" Raven asked.

"He's…he's at the H.I.V.E.!" the Boy Wonder said, feeling a slight grin come to his face. "Cyborg, contact Aqualad and the Herald. Tell them we have a lock on BB's location!"

The Titan nodded as he sent out the signal. Before he could connect, however, a dark portal opened up in the center of Titan Tower. All of them watched as Aqualad and Argent came through the swirling blackness, followed by the Herald.

"Speak of the devil," Cy said.

"Yo, who wants a nice chilled organ of major importance?" Aqualad said, holding up a blue cooler.

"You guys got the heart!" Raven said, a smile coming to her face.

"Yup," Lad said. "All we need is a patient."

"That might be a little tougher to round up," Robin said, his face grim.

"Why?" Argent asked, rubbing her arms to fend off the cold.

"BB's at the H.I.V.E.," the Boy Wonder said.

"Fuck!" Aqualad said, angrily. "I told that little dickweed to stay out of trouble!"

"When's he ever listened to anyone?" Raven said, shaking her head. Sighing, she looked over at Robin. "What do we do now?" she asked.

The Titan leader sat in thought for a moment. "We do what we need to," he said. "Aqualad, you, Raven and Cyborg prep the medical ward! Herald, get ready to toot that horn of yours something good!"

With the speed of a mongoose, the hero typed up a priority message to send out among the channels. It read:

CODE ONE PRIORITY MESSAGE:  
TITAN IN DISTRESS  
NEED ASSISTANCE  
ACTIVATE BEACON AND WAIT FOR HERALD  
BRIEFING UPON ARRIVAL  
CODE ONE PRIORITY MESSAGE.

"Think that'll get their attention?" Robin asked the Herald.

"Like a lightning bolt to the brain," he said, smirking.

With one click, Robin sent the word out.

"Get ready to go," he told the Herald. "Get everyone that you can and bring them all back here to the Tower. We'll need every single hero we can muster!"

"Roger, Robin," the Herald said as summoned his portal

'Hold on, BB,' Robin thought as the screen began lighting up with signal beacons. 'We're coming…'


	15. A Corpse By Any Other Name

"So, you blame me for Mento's undoing, right?" Logan said as Elasti-Girl turned her eyes back upon him.

The woman shook her head slightly. "No, not totally," she said. "Steve was angry that the Titans were slowly putting us out of business. He was never one for diplomacy, but I'm sure you knew that. Still, you are the one who killed him."

Logan grimaced. "Well, I'm here," he said, defiantly. "You want me, come and get me."

Rita smiled. "No Gar," she said, "It won't be that simple…"

_She snapped her fingers. The monkeys pull me to my feet and proceed to 'escort' me down a flight of stairs. Rita's leasing me somewhere. Hmm, can't be good. Nothing of this nature ever is…_

_What the hell…there's a small gazebo standing near the entrance to the H.I.V.E.'s upper floors. A decorative tent's been draped over it. I doubt it's the Publisher's Clearinghouse guy behind it…_

"Logan, it's time that I make you pay for your transgressions," the woman said, grabbing hold of a long piece of cord. "I personally could never bring myself to kill you – even now. I loved you too much… but I have other ways of bringing about your demise."

_The curtain opens…No way…_

Logan stared as the body of Cliff Steele, the Doom Patrol member known as Robotman, stood in silence. It was apparent to the Titan that he had been offline for quite some time.

"Cliff," he said. Looking over at Elasti-Girl, he narrowed his eyes. "So, you're gonna make him face off with me? Fat chance, Rita – we were tighter than glue back in the day."

The woman smiled. "I'd say he and I are a whole lot tighter now," she laughed.

"You ain't been tight since your brother fucked you in the third grade," Logan shot back. He was in no mood for games.

"My, what a mouth!" Rita said, laughing. "Maybe I should just let the big bad robot do his work…"

Slowly, she pulled a small remote from the pockets of her robes. Pressing the button, all in attendance watched as the robot sprang to life. As Logan watched the metal monstrosity come to life, he felt a surge of pain. Tribal boy had just wrenched the battery pack from off his body and hurled it behind him into the pool.

"No extra lives, _puta_," Rodolfo said, grinning. "This time, you die."

_I drop to a knee as the internal battery kicks in. Shit…it's worse off than I thought. Probably doesn't recharge as well as I thought it did. Then again, with the shit I've done today, I surprised the fucker's still working at all. Robotman's walking forward, his eyes on me as he closes the gap. Gotta remind him who I am…_

"Cliff, you don't have to do this," Logan said, staggering back to his feet. "You've never let yourself be controlled by evil before. You don't have to start now!"

Robotman stopped for a moment. Logan considered the idea that his words had gotten through…

BAM!

The punch leveled the Titan, sending him back onto the ground and sliding a couple feet. Propping himself back up, he heard Elasti-Girl laughing as she wrapped her arms around the robot.

"Oh, you're right, Gar," she said, teasingly. "Cliff could have never brought himself to harm you. Neither could Negative Man. That's why I had to…dispose of them. Larry was sent into the depths of outer space…well, at least his body was. His spirit was sent to the center of the Earth."

"You bitch!" Logan growled as he wobbly got to his feet.

"Thank you," the woman said, smiling. "As for Cliff…well, I decided his brain would be far more useful in a blender rather than his own head. Quite nutritious, I can assure you."

"Thought you didn't have it in you to kill," the Titan said, angrily.

"I can't kill _you_," Rita said, sadly. "But, I have someone who can."

Logan grimaced as Robotman worked his way back towards him. Sensing no other options, he charged forward and drove a kick into the behemoth's chest. Big CLANG, little damage. The Robot grabbed the hero's leg and tossed him across the courtyard, bringing him to a painful stop on the decorative tile.

"You see, Garfield," Rita said as the metallic beast moved in on his position. "I'm smarter than you may ever know. I knew that Cliff's body could never work without a brain to guide it properly. It took some time, but I managed to replicate the work that kept him alive so long…and, thanks to you, I had the perfect specimen to test my theories…"

_Rolling over on my back, I see that metal monster truck ready to flatten me. As I brace for impact, I see it smile down at me. With one hand, he gives me the finger. Same to you, Rita. Then it speaks:_

"Fuck you, Garfield!"

_My eyes widen. Mind is racing. Rita's experiment, the words Robotman just said, that voice…that goddamn voice…nothing else in the world like it…_

_FUCK!_

"…Mento…"


	16. A Call To Arms

Robin stood in the center of the Tower. The Herald made his last pickup in record time. Now all of the Titan's extended family that could spare their time were gathered in the Tower, ready for their briefing. To be honest, the tower was getting to be a little bit crowded at this point, but the Boy Wonder didn't care. After the events that occurred three months prior, the Titan family were the only ones privy to what actually happened. They also were the only ones who knew that Beast Boy had died the way he did. The city had been informed that the hero had been lost on an important mission to save his friends. It was the truth – basically. Now, as they stood in the confines of his home, it was time for him to drop the bomb.

"Titans, the unthinkable has happened," he began. "Though, I have to say, I'm not too upset with it."

This remark prompted some looks from the other heroes.

"What are you getting at?" Pantha growled, narrowing her eyes.

Robin smiled. He brought up a still image on the big screen behind him. It was from security footage of the Tower's own elevator earlier that day. The still, blown up, revealed the presence of both Ravager and –

The crowd gasped in shock as they recognized the supposedly-late Titan.

'Just what I expected,' the Titan thought to himself before continuing.

"Garfield Logan, a.k.a. Beast Boy, survived the events of three months ago," he stated. "However, he was placed into a coma by a team of black market doctors who harvested his nigh-unstoppable heart for transplant into Mad Mod, the new leader of the H.I.V.E. BB contacted us after awaking to find he was fitted with a prosthetic heart to keep him alive enough for more harvesting. Since then, he has gone on the run in order to find out where his heart was. Thankfully, Aqualad, Argent, and the Herald located and obtained said heart through methods I'm not obliged to reveal."

"Or really want to," Aqualad interjected from the back.

Robin smiled. "Five minutes ago, a distress beacon came from the H.I.V.E. Academy. This was a prototype communicator I personally gave to Beast Boy prior to his run earlier today. Something big is going down at the H.I.V.E., and he's in way over his head. What I am asking of you is to put your prejudices aside and join us in the battle to destroy the H.I.V.E. and rescue Garfield Logan."

The Boy Wonder stood tall among the group of heroes. "Given the events that have taken place today, it is almost a guarantee that the H.I.V.E. will be heavily guarded. Reports of the Los Muertos street gang affiliating with the H.I.V.E. means that there will likely be gun-toting bangers waiting to make their bones off of killing a Titan. As you know, I am against lethal action of any kind. However, if any of you choose to cross that line…let's just say I'll be looking the other way today – even if I'm staring right at you."

Rose smiled as she heard the Titan's words. 'Love you, too,' she thought to herself.

"Now, you all will have a few minutes to get prepared. Then, the Herald is going to transport us en masse just outside the Academy. Remember: The destruction of the H.I.V.E. is a secondary objective. Above all, we cannot let Beast Boy die…_I _can't let Beast Boy die. He saved my life once. It's time I return the favor."

Robin's eyes cut to the doorway as Cyborg came into the room. "Medical wing's ready," he said. "Just need that little grass stain."

"One grass stain, coming up," the Titan said, smirking. Looking around the room, it was apparent that the team didn't need any more time to ready themselves.

"Blow the horn, Herald," he said. "Today, the Titans will take back their city and the one man who saved our lives. H.I.V.E. falls, Logan lives. TITANS, GO!"


	17. In Need Of A Comeback

_Damn, I never knew just how much steel could hurt._

_My knees buckle as I take another solid shot to the jaw. Pretty sure Mento could have pounded me to a pulp by now, but he's dragging it out. Enjoying it. Didn't get that chance last time. Probably some left over animosity from me shooting him and snapping his neck. Things like that sitting on your mind tend to get you highly pissed. _

_My arms and legs are raw as hamburger meat. Punching metal's not good for you, kids. Don't try this at home – unless you're really fuckin' dumb. Then it doesn't matter what I say anyway._

_Rita's on the side. Strange, she seems almost…sorry for me. Guess she really did love me. Pity. Too bad she went all dipsy-fucking-doodle on me. Tribal boy and his buddies are loving every minute of it. Probably got bets with each other on how long I go before I die. Tribal boy himself looks like he's practically orgasmic. Got his hand in his pocket. Might be playing a round of pool, if you catch my drift. _

_One more solid shot incoming. Brain's too fucked up to shout "MOVE, FUCKER!" _

_This is gonna sting…_

Logan snapped back onto the ground as Mento delivered a hard cross to the chin.

"Ain't so tough now, are you motherfucker?!" he shouted. Like his protégé, he didn't expect much to come after that fall from the copter. But Rita…she had given him the chance to avenge his loss. He would take it for all it was worth…

"STEVE, WAIT!" Elasti-Girl's voice rang out over the rooftop. Mento turned just in time to see his wife place her hands upon his metallic chest.

"What?" he asked, rather irritated.

"Steve…I…I can't do this," Rita said, tears running down her face. "Gar was like a…a son to me. I can't let him die…I can't let you kill him."

"What?!" the robot screamed. "You brought me back from the dead, gave me the one man who fucked up my life – fucked up our life – and now you want me to stop?!"

"I can't let this go on," the woman said, sadly, pulling the remote from her robes. "I lost you. I can't lose him, too. I'm sorry, Steve…"

Her finger hovered over the power button as she gave him one last kiss. His metallic lips bore no heat, no pleasure for her. The man she loved was truly gone, with only a shell to remain.

"Me, too…" Mento muttered.

Rita let out a horrific scream as the robot grabbed her hand and crushed it – along with the remote. Though Elasti-Girl's hand could recover, the fail-safe control wouldn't.

"I'm sorry you're a useless CUNT!" Mento roared as he floored his wife with a solid punch to the face. Rita hit the ground, and didn't get back up.

"Now, where was I?" the Doom Patrol leader said, looking around. His eyes fell back on Logan. "Oh yeah, I was just about to kill you."

The Titan got back to his knees as the robot stood over him, hands raised in gigantic fists.

"Come back from this, motherfucker…"

* * *

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!

Mento staggered back as a wave of green bolts slammed into his being. Shaking off the cobwebs, he glared into the sky – and dropped his jaw in shock.

Starfire glared back down at him. So did Bumblebee. As if on cue, the other Titans stormed the rooftop.

"Hey, asshole!" Ravager shouted out, brandishing her twin H&K MP-5's with a devilish grin. "Remember me?"

The robot shook his head in disbelief. "You've got to be fuckin' kidding me…"

"Not quite!" Kid Flash said, flexing his muscles. "You killed Wonder Girl! I think it's about time to send you back to HELL!"

Mento grinned. "I'd like to see you try…"

Motioning to the bangers, the Doom Patrol leader laughed as H.I.V.E. soldiers began pouring onto the rooftop.

"Kill these fucking kids!" he shouted.

Game on.


	18. Time In A Bottle

_I hear the first volleys of war. The Titans are hitting the deck as the bangers open up hard and fast. Star and Bee take some evasive maneuvers to avoid the flying lead and laser blasts. Mento's more preoccupied with the arrival of thirty-plus heroes bend on kicking his ass to worry much about little ol' me as of the moment. _

_Getting back to my feet, I see Robin crack a couple of the soldiers good with that stick of his. Damn, that'll hurt in the morning. Movement out of the corner of my eye. Tribal boy's looking for the finish. That cattle prod's in his hands. He presses the button…_

_Nothing. Out of juice. Doesn't stop him. Figures he'll just beat me to death with it. Rude awakening in three, two, one…_

Rodolfo swung the cattle prod at Logan's head with the force of a major league ballplayer.  
"Die, mutafucka!" he shouted.

The metal pole sailed through the air and landed – dead in the Titan's outstretched hand! As the banger looked on in shock, Logan wrenched the prod from him, spun it around, and drove it home – in the stomach and out the back. Staggering forward, Miguel spit blood through his clenched teeth. Looks like payday was too far away after all…

_Tribal boy takes a nap. Long one by the looks of things. Surveying the scenery, I see the Titans are gaining the advantage. Jericho's using that mind shit of his to turn one of the bangers against his buddies. Got the one with the shotgun. Nice. He takes out four of them before going down in a hail of gunfire…well, at least the host does. Jericho's back up and running in seconds. Can't see Cyborg among the group. Probably back at the tower prepping for surgery. Hoping Lad came through for me. _

_My eyes harden. Mento has Starfire by the throat. Must have plucked her out of the sky. Running out of air and time. I pick up the cattle prod. Here goes…_

Mento's hand tightened around the Tamaranean's neck as she struggled against his grip. Robin had seen him drag her out of the sky by her ankle, but he couldn't get close enough to toss a boomerang. Couldn't use an explosive one because of Star. This one was all his…

CLANG! The Doom Patrol leader roared in pain as a metal pole caught him in the back of the head. Spinning around, he saw Logan standing at the other end of the rooftop.

"Logan…" Mento's grip loosened on the girl, and she fell to the floor gasping for air.

_Got his attention alright. Now, just have to keep him occupied…_

_SHIT! I feel the pain in my chest. Looks like the cattle prod wasn't the only thing out of_ _juice. I take a knee as Mento closes the distance. Doesn't matter. Gotta finish this…even if it finishes me. Looking up, I see him hovering over me like a cat who cornered a mouse. His smile is one of superiority. This is me…right before the end. I'll walk into that good night with my head held high. Come on, fucker. Finish this…_

Mento rose his fists into the air.

"See you in Hell, Logan!" he screamed.

The moment had come…

Rose screamed as she gathered all of her strength. With her feet pounding the tile, she slammed head-on into the metal monstrosity. The combined force of the drug-induced teen and Mento's shock allowed the Titan to tackle him down to the ground. Popping up, she pulled the MP-5's forward, and let loose with a massive burst. The robot shot up in agony as the armor-piercing rounds drove bullet after bullet into his chest. Looking back, Rose saw Logan kneeling.

"GARFIELD!" she screamed. "FIND THE HERALD! GET BACK TO THE TOWER!"

Suddenly, the Titan slipped over the side and down the stairs. Mento had used that moment of weakness to overpower Rose. Anger surged through his being as he realized his servo motors had been damaged. He couldn't fight for much longer, but he sure could kill the bitch that damaged him.

_Rose! Crazy bitch. Guess that's why we got along as well as we did. Still do. Don't think in the negative. Not about them. Titans'll win. That's all that matters. Damn, heart's like molasses in winter. Need something to get me going. _

_I'm back on my feet. Bullets and beams flying all around me. It's fucking surreal. Like I got some 360-degree view of the world. That's when I see it. The transformer on top of a nearby pole. It's about ten feet up, and I figure were about fifty feet off the ground. Total of sixty feet to fall if I fuck up. Hmm. Child's play._

* * *

Rose let out a grunt as Mento placed a kick to her ribs. Chances were that broke at least one of them. That was okay. She still had more. Getting back to her feet, her hand went to her side, pulling the gun from its' holster.

SLAP! The robot backhanded her arm, sending the gun flying off into the breeze and nearly snapping her forearm in the process. Angered, the Titan drove a kick to the side of her opponent's body. She then let out a gasp as Mento caught her leg and pinned it to his body – and then a scream as he snapped her tibia like a toothpick. Hitting the ground, the girl felt a new feeling run through her: _fear_. Could she defeat Mento now? Would she even survive?

* * *

_I hear Rose's scream as I take grip of the rungs on the pole. Mento's as sadistic as ever. Can't help her now. Please, Rose, just hang on…_

_Star's been shot. Given the nature of the wound, it was from one of the bangers. She looks more angry than terrified. Probably a flesh wound. Robin's gone apeshit. He's smacking fools left and right with that staff of his. Gotta love a man who can save the day and not break his moral code. That's not me. Then again, I was never taught to have a moral code…_

_Titans are turning the tide of battle. Little punkass villains are peering out the door, coming face-to-face with what they'll have to deal with when they graduate. Probably shitting themselves. No better time than now to find a better career choice. If not, they all better hope for the best. Heaven knows I won't…_

_I'm up at the transformer. This thing's a goddamn monster. Got enough juice in it to sent me to Rangoon and back without a crossover and still have enough for a marathon. I flex my fingers in anticipation. Only one way to go. Like lightning to the brain. Gimme some sugar, baby…_


	19. Can't Stop, Won't Stop

The massive explosion of sparks bathes the rooftop in a flash that left everyone disoriented – disoriented enough not to see the rag doll that blew away from the transformer's massive blast.

"What the hell was that?" Kid Flash said, blinking his eyes.

Robin's blood ran cold. 'Logan…' he thought. 'He didn't…"

* * *

Rose hobbled on one leg as she managed to dodge another haymaker delivered by Mento and his newly-constructed form. Her adrenaline was pumping as she sought to stay one step ahead of the metallic behemoth.

'God, I wonder if this is what Garfield felt that whole time', she thought to herself as she ducked and rolled under another wild swing. 'It's a hell of a feeling…'

The girl's thoughts were interrupted by a roundhouse to her good leg, sending her sprawling onto the ground.

"ROBIN! HELP!" she screamed as she rolled onto her back.

"ROSE!" The Boy Wonder hollered. Try as he might, the Titans were being held at bay by the remainder of the H.I.V.E. soldiers. The Los Muertos were now just like their name – dead…at least most of them were. Pulling on their reserve strength, the Titans staged one last volley. Robin's mind went wild as she saw the girl laid out on the ground in front of Mento. Even if they got through, they were still too far away to save her in time. As the Doom Patrol leader raised his fists, the Boy Wonder closed his eyes. He couldn't watch her die…

"I'll send you back to your father in an envelope!" Mento roared, glaring down at the broken Titan. "He'll probably thank me for it!"

With that, the hammer came down…

* * *

_I'm on fire. _

_Seriously. I'm on fuckin' fire. Blast from the transformer knocked me for a loop. Still, my heart's moving like the goddamn Space Shuttle. Catching the fire escape on my way down, I bounded my happy little ass back up to the roof. I arrive just in time to see the hammer coming down on Rose. Uh-uh, motherfucker…It's you and me…_

Mento recoiled in shock as Logan whipped him around. His face was a mask of pure hatred. It was also aflame, as was parts of his upper body. The Doom Patrol leader gagged from the smell of burning flesh as the epitome of the term "ghost rider" stood before him.

It was time.

_DING motherfuckin' DING._

_I start laying into Mento like a man possessed. I hear multiple CRACKS as I rain down punches. Probably the bones in my hands shattering from the brutal blows. Don't care. Can't feel it right now. Don't give a shit. Fucker's gotta die. I can't stop. I won't stop._

"MOTHER….FUCKER!" Logan screamed.

_Blood flows from my busted knuckles as I continue the onslaught. Strange…looks like it's actually hurting him…_

_His brain! I gotta destroy the brain! It's bouncing around inside that dome of his real good. I drive another solid punch to the skull cap. Looks like Rita didn't anchor it too well. It pops off like a Pringles top. Now, just need something to finish the job…_

Despite the agonizing pain, Rose reached around to the back of her belt.  
"LOGAN!" she screamed as she tossed up a small black box.

_I catch it in my other hand. You know, the not-so-broken one. I take a quick look. Nice, Rose. This'll do the trick…_

Mento grunted as he felt the servo motors slowly shutting down. Looking up at his protégé, he saw the box in his hands.

_SNAP-SNAP._

"This time you DIE, MOTHERFUCKER!" Logan screamed as he drove the nodes of the Taser deep into the robot's exposed brain. A horrific scream emanated from Mento's mouth as the organ seared to a crisp. The body shook violently as the wave of electricity shorted out the central control. Within moments, the lifeless automaton pitched forward onto the ground.

Mento, the leader of the Doom Patrol, was dead. Again. Disgusted, Logan tossed away the Taser. The flames continued to eat away at his body, but he seemed unaffected by them. Something was wrong…

* * *

_I feel like a million bucks. Mento's dead, and the Titans are safe. Take two on the victory celebration. I'm in the best shape of my life. As I run to the edge of the building, I pump my fists into the air. I'm Rocky fuckin' Balboa. I'm king of the world. Nothing's gonna stop me now…_

Groggily, Rita opened her eyes. That blow Mento had delivered to her face had been solid enough to knock her down for the count. Looking around, her eyes took in the devastation that came from the Titans' final stand. But nothing could match the horror she felt as she saw the cold shell of Mento's robotic body laid out on the ground.

Rushing to his side, she gagged as she took in the brutal sight. The brain of her husband was burned to a crisp, the nodes of the Taser evident on the organ. Her eyes teared up as she came to realize that Mento was truly dead.

"LOGAN!" she screamed.

_I hear my name in the air. It's a soft, sweet sound. I turn back from the edge of the building…_

_I don't believe it…it's her…_

_My mind is running in circles. My heart is pounding like a jackhammer. It's her…_

_My baby…She's as beautiful as ever, Her skin is glowing with a warm sensation that lights a fire deep in my soul. I see her arms open, beckoning to me. The world is slowing down around me. It's kinda like one of those moments at the end of a movie when the hero finally gets the girl. I always liked that part. Not as much as the ultra-violent action and horror in between, but close to it. I can hear a song playing in my head…_

_**And I meant  
**__**Every word I said  
**__**When I said that I loved you  
**__**I meant that I'd love you forever…**_

_My face break out into a wide grin. My arms open up. Raven, I'm here, baby…_

* * *

Elasti-Girl stumbled back in horror as she saw Logan. God, what was wrong with his eyes? He was delusional, seeing something else. Her jaw dropped in fear as she realized that he was coming straight towards her. She's couldn't move. Fear held her fast.

God, he was…he was on _fire…_

As a blackened hand reached for her face, Rita Farr let out a horrific scream…

* * *

_I take Raven into my arms. Her eyes lock with mine as I hold her gently. Her face has the same smile as mine. I can smell her, taste her. It's intoxicating. As our lips meet, I know the truth: I cannot – and will not – leave her side. Rae, I'm gonna keep on loving you…_

_Thanks, REO._

_The moment is perfect. I can hear the sounds of passion in the air. All is right in the world…_

_Hmm…hold up…Do I smell a barbeque?_

* * *

_The vision fades away. The nightmare begins. My eyes snap back into focus. Raven is gone. In her place is Elasti-Girl. God, she's on fire…Shit! I'M ON FIRE! My arms break free, and Rita falls to the ground, screaming in pain. The pain's coming for me as well. But…it's not the fire that's getting me…_

_CLICK-CLICK._

_FUCK! Time's up. Crocodile's coming for me. I grit my teeth in rage._

_CLICK-CLICK._

_I can't believe this shit! This never happened to Chev Chelios, did it? Did it? Shit, I can't remember now!_

_CLICK-CLICK._

_The Titans are horrified to see me in my state. Can't blame them. I'm not Hotspot. Shit, even he's looking at me in stunned disbelief. I'm a goddamn sideshow attraction again!_

_CLICK-CLICK._

_I finally let out a scream. It's not in pain, but anger. Is this my big prize, my pot at the end of the rainbow? It's a goddamn porta-potty! It's not fair!_

_CLICK-CLICK._

_Hero saves the day. Hero gets the girl. Hero gets laid. Cut, print, roll credits. That's the way it's supposed to be!_

_CLICK…CLICK._

_Looking up to the sky, I give the all-seeing bastards of the universe the finger. How could they do this to me? What kind of sick mind would play such a practical joke? I won! I fucking won!_

_CLICK…Click…_

_WHAT KIND OF FUCKING ENDING IS THIS?!_

_Click…_


	20. Epilogue: In My Dreams

_**The medical wing in Titan Tower stood empty. The heart sat in a cooler on the counter, waiting for the chance to be put back in its' home. The stage was set for one final drama. But…sometimes life throws a curveball that no one really expects. Not everything turns out well in the end. That's the way of life. Sometimes, things just don't – **_

* * *

"Get him in here!" Cyborg yelled as he powered up the equipment.

The Titans rushed into the room, carrying the mangled body of Beast Boy into the medical ward. The sight of his battered body sent Raven into a tailspin.

"What the fuck happened to him?!" she screamed, demanding an answer.

"Son of a bitch grabbed a transformer to juice up," Bumblebee said as she and a handful of the heroes placed the Titan on the operating table. "Set him on fire. Musta messed his mind up good, 'cause he ended up hugging the headmistress and burning her to a crisp."

"Why'd he do that?" the girl asked, confused.

"Probably thought she was you," Aqualad said as he squeezed his way into the room. "Betcha glad you didn't go with, huh?"

Raven stared at the hero's burnt body. "I bet can heal his wounds," she said, reaching out for him.

"There'll be time for that later!" Cyborg said, grabbing the girl's arm. "I gotta save his life first! Go and heal the others. Star's been shot, and Rose's got a broken leg."

Raven stood in place, looking down at Logan's body. Something told her not to go…

"Rae, get on out of here!" Lad said. "We'll keep you guys updated. Now MOVE!"

With one final glance, the Titan finally allowed herself to be pushed back out into the hallway.

* * *

Cyborg's hands moved with amazing proficiency. The over head laser fired up as he cut through the scar across Logan's chest.

"Okay, got him on the heart-lung machine," Lad said, stepping back. "Oughta hold him until we drop it in."

"Thanks," the mechanical Titan said as he placed a rib spreader in the open chest of the Titan. With a few clicks, he had enough room to get at the mechanical heart. For a moment, he stared down at the device as it slowly thumped out what little power it had left. 'Damn, BB's more like me right now than I could have ever imagined', he thought.

The moment passed. Quickly, he reached in with a hand laser. With low power and precision, he cut the heart away from its' organic ties.

"Here," he said, handing the blood-filled device to Aqualad. Gagging, the Titan quickly tossed it into the trash.

"Damn, that was gnarly," he said, a shiver running through his body.

"Here comes the battery," Cy said as he plucked the wire from the open cavity of Logan's chest and dropped it on the table. "Battery's out. Get me the heart."

Lad opened the cooler. With delicate hands, he pulled the organ from the box and handed it gently over to Cyborg. With one fell swoop, the Titan dropped the heart back into place in Logan's body. Grabbing a specially designed suture laser, Cyborg reattached the veins and arteries to the all-important organ. Pulling the rib spreader, the last touch was to close up Logan's chest. Suture laser did its' job magnificently. Didn't even leave a scar. At this moment, Aqualad looked up at him.

"That's it?" he asked.

"That's it," Cyborg said, sighing. "Basically. The last step is to take him off the machine and see if the heart can operate on its' own."

"'Moment of truth' kinda shit, right?" Lad asked.

"Yup," the Titan said.

* * *

Raven had healed up Rose's leg with relative ease. As the Titan tested out the repair job, she smiled.

"Good as new," she said, giving a thumbs-up. "Maybe even better."

"Glad you approve," Raven said, smirking. "If not, I could always re-break it and try again."

"That won't be necessary," Rose said, smirking back. Then her face softened. "How's BB?"

"Don't know," the girl said, looking at her hands. "They booted me out before I could do anything. God…he's burnt to a crisp."

"I know," Rose said, sitting next to the Titan. "Starfire threw him into the pool on top of the H.I.V.E. Academy to put him out before the Herald brought us back here."

Despite the nature of the situation, Raven grinned. "They have a _pool_?" she asked.

"Funny, huh?" Rose said, grinning back.

The smiles were fake. Both of them were concerned with Logan's fate, but didn't want to show it.

"What say we take a peek inside?" Rose said, quietly. "We'll be discreet."

Raven slowly nodded. "No harm in that," she said.

* * *

"Okay, moment of truth time," Cyborg said, his finger on the machine. "Here goes…"

The machine winded down as the power cut off. Cy and Lad held their breaths. This was it…

BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…

"YES!" Cyborg said, hugging his fellow Titan. "It worked! It worked!"

"Dude, get on the intercom and broadcast the good news!" Aqualad said, slapping a hand on the back of the Titan. "You know, if you ever wanted to stop being a hero, you could be a doctor."

"Nah, being a hero's too much fun," Cy said, grinning. As he reached for the mike, Lad looked up at the EKG machine. Holding fine. Goddamn Logan, you are one tough son of a –

BEEP…BEEP…BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.

"Fuck…FUCK!" Lad shouted. His voice was loud enough to attract both Raven and Rose. Despite the discreetness, Raven couldn't contain herself. She burst into the room – and found Cyborg and Aqualad in a panic!

"CY! He's flat-lining!" Lad was screaming.

"Give me the paddles!" Cyborg ordered. Quickly, Lad slid the difibulator paddles over to the Titan. The wave of motion sent a chill through Raven's heart.

"What's happening?" she cried out.

Cyborg glanced over at her. "Lad, get her out of here!" Quickly he charged the paddles. "BB? CLEAR!"

The body shot up as the juice went through. No signal.

Cyborg hit it again. Nothing.

One last time. Full strength…

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE…

"FUCK!" The Titan hurled the paddles across the room, taking the machine with it. The maddening tone reverberated off the walls of the medical wing.

"Cyborg, what's happened?" Raven said, trying to get pass Aqualad and back into the room.

"Raven…RAVEN!" Lad said, shaking the girl. Her eyes met his, a pair filled with confusion staring into a pair filled with sadness. "It's…it's over. He's gone…"

"No…NO!" The girl screamed as she tried to break the Titan's grip on her arms. "NO! DO SOMETHING! PLEASE!"

"There's nothing more we can do…" Lad began.  
"BULLSHIT!" Tears were streaming down Raven's face. "It can't end like this! IT JUST CAN'T!"

"I'm sorry," Lad said, his own eyes tearing up.

With her energy spent, Raven collapsed in the aquatic hero's arms, her face buried in his chest. Her shoulders heaved as her body was wracked with sobs. He was gone. Beast Boy was gone This time, however, they had him. They watched him die. This time…there were no miracles to be had. Slowly, Aqualad and Rose led the grief-stricken Titan away from the room. It was time to inform the others that the coffin they placed in the ground would finally have its' occupant.

Cyborg now stood alone in the room. Everything had been perfect. Everything…except Logan. The human condition, the X factor that could never quite be pinned out and accounted for in any given situation, had served him well. Too bad it ultimately turned on him in the end. Looking down at the blood on his hands, tears welled up in the Titan's human eye. He was gone…gone…gone…gone…

The wall dented in as Cyborg let loose a cry of inhuman rage punctuated with a fist. It…it wasn't right. Then again, life never really was.

The light switched off and powered down as the Titan left the room. The EKG finally settled into silence, leaving the body of a true hero to rest at last.

* * *

_**Uh-Hum. As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, sometimes things don't work out the way we would like them to. The Teen Titans of Jump City learned this fact all too well on this day. But, perhaps they should count themselves lucky to have had the chance to fight alongside their friend once more before the end. After all, we all have to die someday…**_

* * *

_Thump…_

_Thump…_

_Thump…thump…_

_Thump-Thump…_

_THUMP-Thump…_

_THUMP-THUMP…_

_But not today…_

* * *

_My eyes open…and I smile. _


End file.
